The Difference a Year Makes
by seezee
Summary: Annie and Auggie make plans to travel to Glencoe for a Traditional Anderson Thanksgiving, and the relaxing holiday weekend ramps up when they are needed to help plug a leak to protect our national security.
1. Chapter 1 Getting Settled

"The Difference a Year Makes" is sort of a sequel to my two previous stories, "Flight 642" and "The Zhukov Connection." I like to imagine what Annie and Auggie do on their off time, when they're not chasing bad guys and concentrating on hand-to-hand training in the gym,so this story includes slice-of-life arcs as well as a little suspense and some adventure. Auggie and Annie can't help themselves ... they are always going to find adventure.

This story was well on the way to completion before Auggie met Parker and Dani invited Annie to move back into the guest house. I've chosen to ignore those developments in this fan fiction.

I own nothing of Covert Affairs except an appreciation for the work the entire cast and crew does to bring the stories and their characters to life on our television sets on Tuesday nights.

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><p><strong>Chapter 1 – Getting Settled<strong>

The warm days of fall were beginning to cool along the East Coast, and Annie Walker was enjoying the crisp air blowing through the open windows of her new apartment. It was the weekend after Halloween, and Annie finally had made time to unpack the remaining boxes of her belongings.

Annie stood in the middle of the sparsely furnished but comfortable living room and surveyed her new surroundings. Her "new place" was feeling more like home now that she had unpacked her personal treasures and had added some accents from the decorator shop she'd discovered in the neighborhood shopping area.

The furniture she'd chosen was much like herself … stylish, warm and comfortable with just a touch of whimsy. She liked the way the room had come together and she was proud of herself for taking the extra time to research the furniture details that make life easier for the vision impaired. She was careful to buy tables with rounded corners and had arranged the room so there was nothing that Auggie could bump his head on.

Annie remembered Auggie's first visit to the newly furnished apartment, when she stood at the front entrance with Auggie and described the apartment layout. She followed Auggie through the space giving him a commentary on the design and placement as he became comfortable in the space. Auggie had to work very hard at suppressing as smile when he realized her furniture choices were made with him in mind.

Annie hadn't discussed furniture with him, except to make a point that she had found the perfect sofa for snuggling and watching movies. She'd also told him she had purchased a table that had extensions so that she could have six people sit at the table.

"Well," Annie asked, "do you approve? You won't be too uncomfortable when you spend time here, will you?"

"Annie, I think I'll be just about as comfortable here as in my own place, when I'm fully acclimated," Auggie said with a smile. "You know, don't you, I'm pretty comfortable when I'm with you … no matter where we are."

Giving him a hug, Annie said, "I know … I feel the same way about you."

"Then why didn't you accept my offer to move in with me when Dani asked you to move out of the guest house?"

"Time's not right. I need to live on my own … really on my own for a while."

Auggie nodded his understanding.

Annie's daydream remembering Auggie's exploration of the apartment was interrupted by her personal cell phone ringing. She reached over to the table, picked up the phone and frowned when she saw the name pop up from her contact list. Her heart sank a little, worried the call could be bringing bad news.

Taking a deep, calming breath, she answered, "This is Annie."

"Annie, this is Amanda Anderson. How are you this evening?"

The tone of Amanda's voice was light, happy and friendly. Apparently there was no crisis in Glencoe. Annie let out her breath, smiled and curled up on her new sofa for a visit with the woman who might eventually become her mother-in-law.

"I'm fine. Just unpacking a few personal things and tidying up. Auggie's working tonight, so I took advantage of his being busy to put my new place in order," Annie explained. "What's up with you and Fred? Everything OK?"

"We're great, Annie. I wanted to touch bases with you and Auggie about the possibility of your coming out to Glencoe together for Thanksgiving. I tried to call Auggie on his personal cell, and when he didn't answer or call me back right away I knew he was probably working," Amanda explained why she was calling Annie.

"Then, I thought it would be better to call you first to see what your plans for Thanksgiving might be," Amanda admitted. "I think I might have a better chance of getting him home for Thanksgiving dinner, if you could get away, too. Am I right?"

"I don't know," Annie said, "it depends on our work schedules. I know he enjoyed the Memorial Day visit … well you know … except for the Zhukov business … and we both had so much fun when we were there for Cynthia and Aaron's wedding. Oh, we still talk about how great that party was."

"Would I be causing any problems with your family, by asking you to come out, too?" Amanda asked not wanting to turn into a meddling mother-in-law before there was even a marriage.

"I always have dinner with my sister's family, but my parents don't come up for Thanksgiving. They like to come for a longer time over Christmas to enjoy more time then with the girls," Annie explained.

"Well, I've left a message with Auggie. It will be interesting to see whether or not he mentions it to you, won't it?" Amanda giggled. Auggie didn't realize it at this point, but he was helpless because his mother and Annie were conspiring to get him to go home for Thanksgiving.

"I'll sneak up on the subject with him," Annie whispered, "and I'll mention it to Joan."

"Thank you, Annie. We miss both of you. Please try to come."

"I'll let you know." Annie said. "Talk to you later. Bye."

Annie sat for a while staring at the statue on the coffee table thinking how she would approach the subject of going to Illinois for Thanksgiving. She smiled her devilish grin and thought, "I have a little time, so I can wait until he's not exhausted and distracted."

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><p>Annie decided she'd let Dani know there was a possibility she wouldn't be in D.C. for Thanksgiving. Dani listened to Annie's explanation: "Dani, Auggie's mom just called me to invite me to go to Glencoe for Thanksgiving. You wouldn't be too disappointed if I weren't here for Thanksgiving dinner, would you?"<p>

Dani smiled. "I'll miss you. But, oh my gosh! Mrs. Anderson called YOU? That's significant. It's big."

"Well, it's not definite, yet. So don't go giving away my seat at the table until Auggie agrees to go," Annie laughed.

"Auggie hasn't agreed?"

"Not yet. He's working late tonight and he doesn't have his personal cell phone with him," Annie explained. "When Amanda couldn't reach him earlier this evening, she called me. She really wants him home. She even went so far as to tell me they miss me!"

Dani laughed. "That is desperate. Guess she's realizing that you two are a package deal. Just how serious are you two?"

Annie's gaze drifted and her mind wandered. "Well, we're serious. Neither one of us sees anyone else."

Dani couldn't suppress a happy giggle.

"Not THAT serious," Annie chuckled. "Don't start polishing the punch bowl and planning a reception menu."

"OK," Dani retorted. "I'll make sure I know where the punch bowl is, though."

"And Auggie calls me incorrigible," Annie said as she ended the call.

* * *

><p>Auggie was wrapping up a 15-hour day and the lack of food combined with the intensity of the situation had created a throbbing in his head. Through the early evening, several of Auggie's team members had offered to bring him a sandwich and coffee, but he'd declined because he was so focused on helping his operative.<p>

A young officer had been sent to Parma in northern Italy to make a simple brush pass. The pass went fine, but the person who the information was handed off to was abducted. The young officer, Jason, fresh out of training at Camp Peary had to be talked through the rescue.

Auggie hadn't worked with a newbie like Jason since Annie Walker had charged into his ordered life almost two years ago. But, Annie was always full of solutions and had a rock solid intuition in dealing with her circumstances. Annie's intuition wasn't mystical; it was the result of her powers of observation and innate understanding of human nature and reactions. Auggie coached Annie. He never had to tell her every move to make.

Intuition and problem solving on the fly were not Jason's strong points, and the ordeal had exhausted Auggie. But, after Jason had almost panicked, he got his head on straight, listened to Auggie and the team members, and managed to rescue the abducted Polish operative. The young woman had a long trip back to Poland, because she was taking a detour to the U.S.

Auggie read the Braille output from his computer with his right hand while unconsciously tapping his forehead with his index and middle fingers. Sarah, one of his team members, leaned against the door frame to his office and asked, "Headache Boss? Would you please let me bring you a turkey sandwich and a bottle of flavored water?"

Auggie pulled his headphones down around his neck, swiveled toward Sarah and through a wide, genuine smile asked, "Did Annie put you up to that?"

Sarah stammered and her cheeks reddened. "Uh … well … before she left the office she said you wouldn't let her get you anything to eat, and she asked me to be sure you had everything you need. It's been crazy tonight, and you've worked harder than the rest of the team. You made sure we all got a break, but didn't take one yourself."

"I appreciate that, Sarah, but we have Jason and Luiza on their way back safely, so I think we all need to call it a night. I'll get a bite when I get home," Auggie said.

It was just after 10 in the evening as his team members were clearing off their desks and shutting down the computers. The tense conversations from earlier in the afternoon had turned to relaxed teasing about plans for the rest of the week and how exhausted everyone was. Auggie listened and smiled as he realized his team had developed a great working camaraderie.

Auggie picked up his phone and called Annie. "Hello," she answered groggily.

"Did I wake you, Walker?"

"Nope. I was just relaxing with an adult beverage and watching MSNBC. Doing homework to see what's happening in the world that might affect my world in the morning. Wanna spend the night here?" she asked sincerely but seductively with a smile in her voice. "You have three shirts, two pair of jeans and plenty of tee shirts and boxers to choose from."

Auggie wanted to see Annie, but he hesitated.

"I have some leftovers in the fridge. I can warm up roast beef and mashed potatoes for you."

"Now that, Walker, is an offer I will not refuse. It will be nirvana to spend the night with you AND a plate of roast beef. See you in a few."

Auggie pressed the receiver button and speed dialed his car service. "It's Auggie Anderson. Can you pick me up at the front entrance? Thanks, I'll be waiting."

Auggie powered down his equipment, stowed his laser cane, and grabbed his folded cane out of its drawer and headed to the front entrance to wait for his ride. By now the building was practically empty, so he didn't unfold the cane as he made his way confidently to the entrance. Once outside, he opened the cane and walked to the edge of the driveway where he waited only a few minutes before he heard a car in the drive.

The car stopped in front of him and he heard the whir of the window being lowered before Bill's familiar voice called out, "Mr. Anderson, my front door is at your 12 o'clock."

Auggie smiled and nodded as he took a couple of steps to the curb and held out his left hand to locate the door handle. Once settled in, Jim asked if he were headed home or to Annie's tonight. Auggie smiled and said, "Annie's. There's a plate of roast beef and mashed potatoes waiting for me there."

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><p>"Here we are, Sir. The main sidewalk is at your 12 o'clock. Do you need any assistance?"<p>

"Thanks, Jim, I'll be fine. You have a nice evening …. What's left of it. And, will you please stop with the Sir and Mister Anderson. Call me Auggie. Mister Anderson is my dad."

Jim laughed and said, "Yes, Sir … I mean Auggie. It's just I was a PFC, and I know you were an officer. It just doesn't feel right calling you by your first name."

As Auggie opened the door to step out of the car, he turned to Jim and speaking barely above a whisper, "That was then. This is now. Please call me Auggie."

Annie watched for Auggie from her living room window, but she resisted the temptation to go out to meet him. She waited until she heard his cane and footsteps in the hall before opening the door and throwing her arms around him. "I clearly need to work really late without you more often, if I'm gonna get that kind of a welcome," he said as he returned the hug and their lips met in a passionate, but brief kiss.

Auggie draped his arm over Annie's shoulders and walked with her into the kitchen where he smelled the aroma of warm, welcoming food. "Let me warm your plate a little more. I fixed you beef and potatoes with a little gravy and there's a serving of glazed carrots, too. Do you want a glass of milk or a beer to drink?"

"I think I'll have the adult beverage," he said as he folded the cane and stashed it at the end of the kitchen counter near the refrigerator. He gingerly made his way to Annie's new table with its four upholstered chairs.

"Beer, 12 o'clock."

"Thanks," he said lifting it in a toast. "You gonna join me?"

"I will when your plate is warmed," Annie said as she stirred the sliced beef a little and checked the internal temperature of the potatoes and carrots. "This seems to be warm enough," she said as she put the plate on the table. "Potatoes at ten, carrots at two and beef at six. There's a little gravy on the beef and potatoes."

Auggie picked up his fork and took big bite of roast beef. It was late and he was tired, but his smile could have lit up the room. Annie joined Auggie at the table with her beer. "You seem to be enjoying my leftovers."

Auggie nodded, swallowed and said, "Yeah, this sure beats the leftover pizza I have in the fridge at my place."

As Auggie ate, Annie asked, "Was it a rough operation?"

"Things didn't go as planned," he explained. "But we got it turned around and everyone's safe. How was your evening?"

"I ate dinner and finished unpacking some little personal items and I … well I … umm … I talked to your mother. She called."

"Mom called you? Is everything OK at home?"

"Everything is fine. She couldn't reach you, so she called me. She wants us to go to Glencoe for Thanksgiving."

Auggie and Annie both took swigs of their beer. Annie was quiet, letting Auggie process what she'd told him. "What did you tell her?" he asked cautiously.

"I told her it would depend on our schedules and we didn't know this far out what they would be. She said she'd left a message on your cell phone, so you might want to wait to see what that says before you call her back."

Auggie closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he said anything else. "If we could both get away from the office, would you want to go to Illinois for Thanksgiving? Would that cause a problem for Dani?"

"I talked to Dani about the possibility of my not being here for the holiday. She said she'd miss me, but she understands if we decide to go to Illinois. My folks won't come until Christmas," Annie said quietly.

Auggie asked, "Did she say when she wanted us to come or how long she wanted us to stay?"

"No, I think that's up to us," Annie answered. "She did make me feel good when she told me she missed both of us. I know she misses you a lot. I could hear it in her voice."

"We'll see what kind of a mood Joan is in tomorrow. If it's a good time to talk to her, we'll see if we can both be away for a few days around Thanksgiving," Auggie said as he polished off his late supper and beer. "Now, is there another beer in the fridge?" he asked holding up his empty bottle.

"Sure," Annie said. She wanted to ask Auggie what had just happened. He had no hesitation about going home. She pulled two bottles of beer out of the fridge thinking, "I didn't see that response coming."

"Ready for another cold one?" she asked as she pressed the napkin wrapped bottle into his hand and kissed him on the cheek. "Let me rinse off the dishes, and then we can get comfortable with the news or a movie."

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><p>Check back when the update is posted to see how the plans to go to Glencoe develop. Thank's for reading. Hope you enjoyed it half as much as I enjoyed writing it and playing with the characters.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2 Making Plans

Amanda Anderson's scheme is working. It looks like Annie and Auggie are going to make plans to go to Illinois for Thanksgiving. Another day in the the life of our CIA couple.

And, in case anyone has forgotten, I don't own a single thing associated with Covert Affairs except the DVD of Season 1 that I purchased myself and a tee shirt I won in an online sweepstakes. Thanks for reading.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2 – Making Plans<strong>

Auggie woke up gradually vaguely aware he wasn't in his own bedroom and smiled remembering his late supper and evening with Annie. "Annie? Where IS Annie?" he thought. He stopped breathing for a second so he could listen for her breathing. Nothing. He listened for her in the shower, but the apartment was quiet. Then he heard her footsteps coming toward the bedroom. His smile at the mere sound of her footsteps was a reflex he could not control … even if he wanted to.

Annie was carrying two large mugs of coffee. Auggie turned toward the sound and greeted her, "Mornin', Sunshine."

"Good morning, yourself. Are you ready for this mug of coffee? I'll set it on the bedside table."

Auggie got up to use the bathroom and slipped back into bed to listen to the morning news with Annie and enjoy his first cup of coffee.

As they were finishing their coffee, Annie explained that she had put out fresh bagels and cream cheese for breakfast. "Everything's on the table, if you want to start while I jump in the shower," she whispered.

Auggie nodded as a slight devilish grin turned up the corners of his mouth. "It's a shame your shower's so small."

"Geez, you are such a mess," Annie laughed as she lightly punched his shoulder.

Auggie made his way to the table and found breakfast laid out the way Annie always positioned it for him. He appreciated the small gesture, but he had stopped thanking Annie for her thoughtfulness. She always told him it was nothing or said "You'd do the same

thing for me, wouldn't you?" Yes, he would, but it meant so much to him that she made whatever environment he was in easy to negotiate.

The shower was quiet and just a moment later Annie opened the bathroom door allowing the aroma of steaming grapefruit scented shower gel to permeate the apartment. "Aug, did you find everything you need?" she asked as she walked to the kitchen.

"Sure did," he answered as he held out a cup of coffee for her.

"Thanks," she said taking the cup and savoring it. Annie slipped into the chair across from Auggie and spread some cream cheese on her bagel. "Do you want to swing by your place on the way in to the office this morning, so you can check your phone for messages?"

"Might be a good idea," Auggie said. "I'd like to listen to Mom's message before I call her back and walk into a conversation I'm not expecting. Amanda Anderson can be full of surprises."

Auggie showered while Annie cleaned up from breakfast and got dressed. A few minutes later, Annie realized she was still futzing with her hair, and Auggie was ready to roll. "How do you do that?" she asked him.

"Do what?"

"Be ready before me, when I started first; and still look like a cover for GQ."

Auggie chuckled, "I don't waste time on mirrors."

Annie poured the remaining coffee into go cups for the drive, grabbed her keys and asked, "Ready?"

Auggie was already standing by the doorwith his folded cane. Holding it up, he said, "I think I have everything I need. Let's hit the road."

Annie plugged her iPod into her iTrip. "I made a new jazz playlist. I think you're going to like it … it's a mix of traditional and contemporary artists."

Auggie leaned back against the headrest and listened as the soulful music helped him release the last remaining tension from the day before. As she wove through the morning traffic, Annie occasionally glanced over at Auggie and smiled at his humming and contented expression. "Keep your eyes on the road, Walker," Auggie teased.

"How'd you …. Oh, never mind." Annie whispered in exasperation.

Auggie chuckled. "When you turn your head, your hair brushes against your jacket and I get a whiff of your shampoo," he explained as he reached up and squeezed her shoulder and gave her a gentle double pat.

"And I thought you had magical powers."

"No magic. Just astute powers of observation," Auggie said.

"There's no parking spot in front of your building today. I've had to park about half a block away, so if you don't mind, I'll go with you," Annie said as she parked the car and cut the ignition.

"Actually, I'd appreciate that this morning. I still have just a little tension headache going from yesterday," Auggie admitted.

"Why didn't you say something?"

"Thought the coffee and a hot shower would solve the problem. It didn't," he explained as he climbed out of the car and did something unusual. He didn't unfold his cane, and he waited for Annie.

Annie did a little double take as she closed her door and locked up. But, she decided not to make a big deal of his change of habit. As she walked around the car to Auggie, she said, "It will probably get better when you take something for it and have another cup of coffee." She touched his hand and he took her arm to walk to the apartment entrance.

Rubbing his forehead, he said, "It generally does."

Annie gave him a little worried look, stopped and reached up to kiss him on the cheek. Auggie smiled, "Easy there we don't want to be late for work."

Inside his apartment, Auggie went straight to the bathroom cabinet to find his prescription medication "Now," Auggie said, "I should feel tip-top in about half an hour." He walked into the bedroom and picked up his personal cell phone off the night stand and checked the voice mails. There was only one. It was from his mother, and he replayed it on the speaker for Annie to hear, too.

"Auggie, I don't want to spring a Thanksgiving visit on you at the last minute like I did last year. So I'm calling early to get on yours and Annie's schedule for a trip home to spend a few days with us at Thanksgiving. We miss you and Annie. Please try to work it out and let me know, so I can make your flight reservations. Call back as soon as you can. Love you both."

Auggie smiled and shook his head. "She makes a persuasive argument, doesn't she?"

"Yes, she does," Annie agreed, "and I think we should go."

"I do too," Auggie said. "I'm beginning to realize, I hid in the Tech Office at the DPD a little longer than I should have. And, Annie, having you with me when I go actually makes the trip fun."

Settling back into the car for the drive to the office, Auggie asked, "Do you think we have time to swing through Starbucks for another cup of java?"

"We'll make time," Annie said. "Maybe it'll make your meds work a little faster."

Auggie smiled and nodded and he leaned his head back on the headrest and enjoyed Annie's new playlist. After they had stopped for coffee, Auggie quietly sipped his coffee while Annie drove and resisted her usual morning chatter with him when they drove in together. When she pulled into a parking spot and stopped the car, Auggie turned to her and said, "Well, I think I'm going to make it through the day. Thank you."

"I'm glad, but for what?"

"The coffee, the music, the quiet ride," he said as he leaned in closer to her, cupped her cheek in his hand and kissed her.

When they got out of the car, Auggie met Annie by the hatch. Annie reached out to touch her hand to let him know where she was, but rather than taking her arm, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder to walk through the parking lot. Annie returned the hug by patting him on the back. They chatted quietly as they made their way to the front entrance.

As they entered the lobby, Auggie told Annie he would talk to Joan first about time off for Thanksgiving. He had dropped his arm to lightly hold on to Annie's arm as they entered through the security station, and once through security, he released Annie and followed the sound of her footsteps and voice to the elevator.

In the crowded elevator, Annie reached for Auggie's hand and squeezed it making him smile. When the door opened at their floor, Annie reached for his hand again as she started moving toward the door. In the DPD, stopping at Auggie's door, she reminded him to let her know what Joan would say about Thanksgiving.

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><p>Auggie weighed whether or not to call Joan or go to her office and decided to call her to talk while he booted up his equipment for the day. Auggie was one of the few CIA staffers who not only knew Joan's extension but was allowed to use it. Her phone rang twice, and checking the caller ID, she picked up the receiver, "Yes, Auggie."<p>

"Joan, I need a favor."

"What would that be?"

"My mom is on her annual campaign to get me home for Thanksgiving, and this year she has invited Annie, too. We'd like to go out on Tuesday and possibly stretch our visit to Monday. Is that doable?" Auggie asked.

Joan couldn't help but smile, but she straightend her face before she replied. "I think we'll be able to manage a few days by ourselves, so both of you can spend some time with your family."

"Thanks, Joan. As always, you are the best."

Joan respected Auggie's drive, but she had worried because he'd spent several years avoiding his family. She was glad to see him easing back into a good relationship with his family and taking Annie along for the ride.

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><p>Before calling Annie's extension to tell her they could leave on Tuesday before Thanksgiving and come back as late as Monday, Auggie clutched the receiver with his left hand and tapped it into the palm of his right hand. Pressing the receiver button to get a dial tone, he called Annie's extension. Annie saw Auggie's name on the ID window, and answered, "Hi, Auggie."<p>

"You know it could be someone using my phone."

"It could be, but don't forget I can see into your office from my desk, and I can see you at your desk holding the phone," Annie quipped.

"I guess I did forget that … not sure I ever fully realized it," he answered.

"Did you talk to Joan."

"Yep. We can leave as early as Tuesday and come back as late as Monday. I'll call Mom and see how that fits with what she has in mind. Will that work for you?"

"Sure will. That way we'll have a little extra time to spend with your parents alone. Sometimes when we're there, I sense your Mom misses having one-on-one time with you. I'm just glad she welcomes me to tag along."

Auggie laughed at her. "Mom is very fond of you, and you know what? That scares me. I know I don't have a chance against either one of you, much less the two of you together."

"Why, Auggie Anderson, you are beginning to sound paranoid. Do you think we're plotting against you?" she asked playfully.

"No, but I know it could happen. I'm going to try to catch her before our day gets crazy and she's out of the house to one of her meetings."

* * *

><p>Annie watched Auggie from across the DPD bullpen as he rubbed his forehead and held the receiver against his forehead before he called his mother. She saw his fingers carefully key in the phone number and while the phone was probably ringing he took a deep breath and smiled. She could read his lips as he said, "Hi, Mom."<p>

Feeling she might be pushing personal boundries … and besides he had a strange sense when someone stared at him … Annie turned to the thick folder of translations she needed to have back to Joan before she left that evening. She knew Auggie would either call her with a full report of the conversation or saunter past her desk on the pretense of giving her money to go buy coffee and tell her about the conversation.

She knew that Auggie had talked to his mom, but she received no phone call. At mid-morning Auggie showed up at Annie's desk with a ten dollar bill in his hand. He cleared his throat as he approached her desk because he could hear her typing and more than a few times she'd jumped and let out a squeal when he walked up and started talking to her when she was deep in concentration.

"Hey, there Anderson. Do you feel like another cup of coffee?"

"That sounds good, and this should be enough to get you a cup along with a snack for us. Maybe a muffin or a scone to share?"

Annie stood up and took the bill from his hand. She leaned in and whispered, "So, when are we going?"

"I talked to Mom, and we're going to fly out on Tuesday and come back on Monday. Is that still OK with you?"

"Sure," Annie said, "as long as it's still OK with Joan."

Auggie smiled and reminded her, "And you won't have to fly coach on this trip. Mom is buying us first class tickets."

"That sounds sweet."

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><p>Thank's for reading. Check back to see what else is going on while plans are being made to go home for Thanksgiving.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3  Running Her Own Operation

As you may guess from the title of this chapter, Annie is running her own operation ... a personal one to surprise Auggie. It's not easy to hide things from someone who prides himself in knowing everything that goes on in the DPD.

Thanks so much for the alerts and kind comments. This is where I need to remind you that I have no connection with Covert Affairs except for an appreciation of the show, its cast and creators.

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><p><strong>Chapter 3 – Running Her Own Operation<strong>

Annie concentrated on her translations the rest of the morning and into the early afternoon until she realized the odd noise annoying her was her stomach growling and demanding lunch. It was almost one thirty, and she knew Auggie had been working closely with his team wrapping up the paperwork and debriefs on yesterday's almost-disasterous mission. "No wonder he had a headache," she thought, "and if he doesn't eat something and get out of that office, it will be the same thing tonight."

Auggie heard Annie's footsteps come toward his office, but stop at the door. He waited, but she did not enter. Turning his chair to face the general direction of the door, he asked, "Are you waiting for an invitation?"

"No, silly. I was just making sure I wasn't interrupting something important before I asked you to take me to lunch. I'm so peckish from hunger, I don't think I can make it to the cafeteria by myself."

"Anne Catherine, is this a ruse to make me eat?"

"Might be … but I really am hungry and I could use some company for lunch. It won't take long because the lunch rush is way over," Annie said.

Auggie stood and picked up his laser cane saying, "OK, let me escort you to lunch so I can make sure you don't pass out on the way."

Over their lunch of salads, fresh bread and ice tea, Annie asked him about the prescription medicine he took for the headache. "I never saw you take that before. Is it something new?" she asked with a worried tone in her voice.

Auggie smiled at her, "No, you've probably never seen me take it because I'm generally downing a couple of pills about the time you're flying home from one of your missions."

"You sayin' I give you a headache?"

"You have created a few stressful situations, for yourself and for me to figure out," Auggie said lightly. "It doesn't happen regularly, but sometimes I get headaches, and the meds keep them in check before they become debilitating. I think you were right about my not taking time to eat yesterday," Auggie explained while trying to think of a way to change the subject.

Annie dived into her salad and munched happily while Auggie enjoyed a chicken salad club sandwich. "You know what I've been thinking, Auggie? We need some fresh air. Rather than running on the treadmill in the gym, how about we take a run or walk on one of the trails this weekend? … Or, we could do something else."

"Whatever you feel like doing, will sound good to me," Auggie answered. "You about finished? I need to get back?" he said as he collected his sandwich wrapper and chip bag for the trash.

"Last bite," Annie said as she swallowed her salad and washed it down with a sip of tea. She finished gathering their trash and dropped it in the trash barrel on the way out of the cafeteria.

"I could have done that," Auggie said.

Annie smiled up at him. "I know … It was just so easy to put your trash in my salad dish and throw it away together. Do you want me to stop doing things like that?"

"Mmmm … I was reminding you that you do not have to wait on me and clean up my trash," Auggie said lightly but with a serious undertone.

Annie stopped in the empty corridor, stretched up to her toes and whispered to Auggie, "I understand … now, are you going to let me take care of plans for Saturday afternoon?"

"Yes, you get to control Saturday afternoon." Auggie worried only a little about what she had up her sleeve, but he needed to get back to work.

* * *

><p>Late in the afternoon when the DPD had become quiet, Annie glanced into Auggie's office to be sure he was immersed in his current project. Annie picked up her phone and called Amanda Anderson.<p>

When Amanda answered, Annie thanked her for inviting her for Thanksgiving and providing the airline tickets. "Annie, we're so happy that both of you are able to come, the tickets are our treat. And I know Auggie enjoys flying in the First Class cabin, even if he won't admit it," Amanda chuckled.

"Well, I appreciate it. Now, I have a question that may seem odd. Do you mind?"

"I'm intrigued. What do you want to know? Annie, we don't have a dress code for Thanksgiving dinner."

"I was wondering. When Auggie was a boy, did he ride a bicycle?"

Amanda laughed, "He lived on a bicycle. He rode all over Glencoe on his bicycle. He rode to the club to swim and play golf, and to visit his friends. Why?"

"Dani and I were running along one of the running/bicycling trails, and I saw a place that rents tandem bicycles. I thought it would be fun for us to take a bike ride Saturday afternoon, but I wanted to make sure Auggie rode when he was a kid," Annie explained.

"Well, if you get him on one, will you get a picture and send it to me?"

"Thanks, Amanda. I'll let you know how this little adventure turns out. See you at Thanksgiving."

Annie quickly placed another call to the number on the bicycle shop sign she'd memorized several days ago. "Hi, I want to reserve your nicest tandem bicycle for a Saturday afternoon ride."

"Well, we have three tandems, and they're all the same. They're nice bikes," the shop owner said.

"OK," Annie said. "My name is Annie Walker, and what do I need to do to reserve one. Do you need a credit card number?"

"I don't need a card number, but I'll take your phone number."

Annie gave him her personal cell number, and said, "Great, I'll see you Saturday about one thirty or two."

Auggie walked up behind Annie as she concluded the conversation. He asked, "What's going on at one thirty?"

"You told me to make plans for Saturday, so that's what I'm doing," Annie said. "We're doing something outside and we're going to get lots of fresh air and fall sunshine."

Leaning over her chair, Auggie whispered, "Are you going to give me any more hints about your plans?"

Annie shook her head vigorously hoping Auggie would hear the swish of her hair and emphatically said, "Nope! I know you're going to love it. And since you always know everything going on, I'm going to do my best to surprise you. I'm running my own mission here, and it's not cleared for your eyes … uh … uh … your fingers … or ears. Oh, geez, Aug … I'm sorry … that was insensitive."

Auggie let out a little chuckle and patted Annie's shoulder before squeezing it. "No it's not. You forgot for a few seconds, and I'm flattered. Now, let's talk about dinner. Do you want to grab a bite at the tavern, or get some carryout?"

"Let's stop for some Chinese carry out on the way to your place. And after our conversation at lunch, you get to clean up the mess," she teased.

"I'll be happy to, but I know you're going to come along behind me and wipe up the missed crumbs," Auggie teased.

"I'm not talkin'," Annie shot back.

* * *

><p>After dinner, Auggie tidied the kitchen and cleaned off the island while Annie sipped at what remained of her wine. "You want a little more wine," Auggie asked and he put the cartons of leftovers in the fridge.<p>

"No, I need to go home this evening, and I don't want to have to take a cab," Annie explained as she moved toward the sofa. "By the way, nice job on cleaning off the island."

"Why, thank you," Auggie said flashing a smile in Annie's direction. (Annie knew he couldn't see her smile, but she ALWAYS smiled back at him) "Now, are you going to let me in on our Saturday plans … or your Saturday plans."

"No, it's a surprise. You worry about national security, and I'll be in charge of Saturday afternoon. I'm on the Russian desk the rest of the week, so humor me and let me surprise you," Annie pleaded.

Auggie joined Annie on the sofa and draped his arm around her after he'd settled into his spot. He nuzzled her neck with a few kisses and whispered, "I have some new interrogation techniques I could try on you. They are guaranteed to make you talk."

Annie giggled, "You are just terrible. You will find out Saturday. And that's final."

Auggie put on a faux sulk and then they both wilted into laughter.

* * *

><p>Annie took a break from monitoring television feeds from Moscow and St. Petersburg, and went back to her desk in the DPD to make a phone call. Knowing that Auggie had some kind of Annie-dar, she made sure he was busy with his team before she called the number of a bike shop she'd researched on the web. As she dialed the number she felt a little guilty having used Auggie's personal laptop last night to find the shop.<p>

"Big Blue Wheel."

"Hi, I need to do some shopping for some biking gear. I wanted to double check with you that you're going to have everything I need before I make the trip there."

"What is it you need?"

"I need to get bike pants and shirts for a man and a woman, and I also need helmets and gloves."

"I'm pretty sure I can fix you up miss," the man answered.

"Thanks," Annie said, "and your web site says you're open tonight until six. Is that correct?"

"It sure is," the shop proprietor answered.

Annie smiled a little smile of self-satisfaction. She'd checked Auggie's trouser size and she'd found a shop that had everything they needed. She'd managed to slip into the DPD and make her phone call without him detecting her. Now, she could slip into his office say a quick "hello" and make sure he'd be working late so she could hurry to the bike shop immediately when her shift ended.

The stealth part of her "mission" complete, Annie walked toward Auggie's office knowing that he would recognize her footsteps approaching. She was about three steps into the office when he turned his chair to her, smiled and asked, "Are you AWOL from the Russian desk?"

"Nope, just takin' a break. Wanted to touch bases with you. I have some errands I need to run after work, and thought you'd be running late tonight. Do you want to meet up at your place later? Or, do you want me to go on home?"

Auggie made a face while he thought. "I'm going to be tied up until at least seven thirty. Do you want to meet up at my place and we order a pizza or something later?"

Annie could tell he was a little stressed, so she squeezed his shoulder and said, "Later this evening, then."

Auggie nodded and said, "Later."

* * *

><p>By five after five, Annie was in her car driving as fast as the limit would allow to the bike shop. At five thirty, she was parking the car in front of the shop. She burst through the front door and surveyed the displays. The owner came out of the back room wiping his hands to clean off the grease and oil. "How can I help you this evening? I'll be willing to bet you are the person I talked with earlier this afternoon. You need to outfit you and your significant other for a bike outing. Am I right?" he asked.<p>

"You're good," Annie smiled. "First we each need some pants. Not bike shorts but long pants."

"What size and what color?"

"How do they run. Auggie is six feet tall, but he's slender and toned. I think I'd better get him black," she said, and then muttered under her breath, "since that's about all he ever wants to buy."

"He'd probably take a medium, then," the man said, pulling a pair of pants from the shelf. "What size shirt?"

Annie thought a few seconds, "Probably a large shirt, he works out a lot and he has broad shoulders," she said with a smile. "Do you have that black and gray shirt in a large?"

"Now, what would YOU like," he asked.

Annie surveyed the display of women's clothes, and picked out a pair of bright blue pants for herself and a bright blue and gray shirt. She tried on her gloves, and decided on the extra-large gloves for Auggie. She chose a blue and black helmet for herself and a black and gray one for Auggie. The helmets had inner liners to help make them fit correctly, so they'd just have to figure it out on Saturday.

Annie looked around the shop one more time. "Are there any other basics I need to get us for our first tandem bike ride Saturday?"

"You have the basics, and that's about all you really need. But, many bikers like to wear goggles for eye protection."

Annie thought a moment. "Since our first excursion is on a tandem bicycle that I've rented for Saturday afternoon, couldn't I get by with good sunglasses?" she asked.

"That should work," the shopkeeper said. "What about your friend?"

Annie hesitated. She never "explained" Auggie, and had never mentioned to casual acquaintances much less total strangers that her boyfriend/best friend/significant other is blind. Doesn't matter. It's no one's business. But this was different, and she was compelled to explain.

"Well," Annie began hesitantly, "my friend, as you call him, is blind. He never wears sunglasses, and I'm not sure I could convince him that goggles are necessary for an afternoon bike ride."

The shopkeeper took a pair of sturdy sunglasses off the display and a strap that attached to the earpieces to keep them secured on the head. "The glasses or goggles are for eye protection. It would be even more important for him, because he's not able to see that debris is blowing around. Neither one of you would want to spend the evening in the emergency room to have something removed from an eye."

Annie made a face and whispered, "Ouch."

"Exactly," the shopkeeper said.

"I guess I'd better get two pair of sunglasses."

As her purchases were scanned, Annie pulled out her debit card and held her breath waiting for the total: $427.83. "About what I'd thought," Annie thought to herself. She'd actually planned to spend $500, so she felt she was almost $75 ahead.

Annie was loading her purchases into her car's back hatch, while across the river in Langley Auggie powered down his equipment and called for his car service. He used his encrypted phone to call Annie to see if she'd finished her errands.

"I'm in my car and headed to your place, so yes, I have everything under control. How about you?"

"Just waitin' for my ride home. Whoever gets there first has to have an open brew ready to hand off to the other one."

"It's a deal," Annie laughed.

* * *

><p>Annie parked her car a few places down the street from the apartment building's entrance and surveyed the area to see if she could see the car service vehicle. She looked up at Auggie's window, which was dark. If he expected her, he generally turned on the light for her … unless he forgot … or was playing a trick on her. She hurried into the building and up the stairs. She held her ear to the door and listened before she put her key in the door. She was steeled to have him pop out from behind something and grab her.<p>

She slid the door opened as quietly as possible and checked either side of the entrance. It was clear. No Auggie. She gently flipped the overhead light switch and looked around the room. No Auggie. She checked the far end of the island. No keys. No phone. No folded cane. She'd gotten there first.

Annie stashed her purse in its usual place at the end of the dresser in the bedroom, hung up her jacket and slipped out of her heels into a pair of sport slides she kept in Auggie's closet. She surveyed the contents of his fridge and noticed he had a 12 pack of beer cooling. She called him. "What's your ETA?"

"I've been in the car about 15 minutes … so I'd say another 10 or so. Why?"

"I thought I'd go ahead and order the pizza. You want sausage, mushrooms and black olives on your half? I'll get veggies on my half."

"Sounds good. Did you find the beer?"

"Yep, I'll have one waiting for you."

Auggie ended the call and Harold said, "Auggie, I've noticed that since last winter you don't seem to dread going home at night the way you used to. I'm happy for you that you've found someone as great as Annie."

"How did you know I dreaded going home?"

"Anyone with half a brain could see it. You just seemed sad. I don't know if it was your expression or your body language, but I could tell you kind of dreaded going home to an empty apartment."

Auggie laughed. "And I thought I had everyone convinced I was happy as a clam."

Harold started to slow the car. "Someone's pulling out of the spot right in front of the door, Auggie. When I'm in, you'll have a straight shot at the entrance."

* * *

><p>Annie had called and ordered the pizza and a large salad to share, so she stretched out on the sofa watching the street for Auggie. The SUV parked, Auggie got out and turned back to say something to the driver before he made his way across the wide sidewalk to the apartment entrance. She watched him for a few seconds and smiled. She wistfully wished he could look up to the window to see her so she could wave or do something silly like throw him a kiss … "that's a selfish thought, Annie," she told herself as she hurried to get the beer.<p>

The heavy door to the apartment rattled open. Annie, standing just a few feet inside the door said, "Welcome home. In which hand would you like your beer?"

Auggie took a couple of steps toward Annie with his left hand extended gently and found her right shoulder. Running his hand up her neck to her cheek, he bent down, kissed her cheek and said, "Let me stash this gear, and I'll be happy to hold one in each hand."

Annie pivoted under his arm and snuggled next to his left side as he walked toward the island. She took a couple of steps out of his way while he folded and secured his cane and placed his encrypted phone in its docking station. Holding out both hands, he commanded, "Beer!"

Annie placed a napkin-wrapped bottle in his right hand. He smiled and took a long swig. "When's the pizza supposed to arrive?"

"Any minute now," Annie said as she took his hand and gently tugged him toward the sofa.

* * *

><p>After their pizza supper and a couple of beers, Annie packed the leftover pizza in bags and put them in the freezer while Auggie wiped down the counters and loaded their few dishes into the dishwasher. They bumped into each other in front of sink and laughed. Auggie draped his arm over her shoulders and asked quietly, "Are you going to be able to stay tonight?"<p>

"I don't know if I have any work clothes here. Let me see what's in your closet," she answered looking up at his expectant expression with a half-smile.

She hurried around the corner through the bedroom and into the closet to the end of the rod where she generally kept a few work outfits as well as some casual clothes. And there, in cleaner bags, freshly cleaned and pressed were two pant suits and three blouses. "Auggie! You took my clothes to the cleaners. Now, I have to stay."

"That's what I was hoping," he answered with a wide, warm smile.

* * *

><p>Friday morning Annie and Auggie hurried into the main entrance at Langley early, so they could swing by Starbucks for coffee and a scone before work. After her last bite, Annie remarked she needed to get to work on the Russian Desk so she didn't fall behind in her monitoring assignment.<p>

Auggie sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"I know it's silly, because I can't see you sitting at your desk, but when I know you're not there, even when I'm ridiculously busy, I feel a little empty," Auggie admitted while he reached across the table and seductively rubbed her arm.

"Oh, Auggie … I'm three doors down in the same corridor, not halfway around the globe," she teased.

* * *

><p>Do you think Annie will be able to pull off surprising Auggie with the Saturday afternoon bike ride? Check back to see what happens in Chapter 4. Thanks for reading. As Auggie says ... later.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4 Annie's Surprise

Well, Auggie's going to find out about the surprise Annie's been plotting for him. We'll see how he takes the surprise and whether or not he enjoys the bike outing.

Thanks so much for the alerts and the kind comments. I'm glad you're enjoying the story. And to keep us all out of trouble, I suppose I need to point out that I have no association with the "real" Covert Affairs and this is just for amusement ... mine and yours. Thank you Christopher Gorham and Piper Parabo for bringing such charming characters as Annie and Auggie to life.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4 – Annie's Surprise<strong>

At the end of their busy but rather routine day, Annie and Auggie left Langley and drove to Georgetown because they'd promised to watch the girls while Dani catered an intimate dinner for a Washington power couple. Dani had bribed Annie and Auggie into babysitting by telling Auggie she was making Chicken Chasseur, one of his favorites, and she would leave their dinners in the warming oven.

Both the girls adored Auggie, who not only was up for playing one of the Braille board games Annie had purchased for these babysitting duties but he also was teaching them basic Braille. Annie rattled around in the kitchen cooking the girls' chicken tenders and sautéing the green beans that they would all eat for supper. When their meals were prepared and the table set, Annie stepped into the family room to call them to the table.

She smiled at the warm scene. Auggie sitting on the floor at the coffee table with the girls reading the Braille notes they'd written for him. He bragged on the messages and gently corrected their childish mistakes.

"Is anyone hungry?" Annie asked.

Chloe and Katia scrambled to their feet, and Auggie unfolded his legs and stood slowly, getting his bearings. He flexed his legs and said, "Annie, all of a sudden I'm beginning to feel my age."

Annie walked around the sofa and touched his hand. "Come on, Super Babysitter, dinner is ready on the kitchen table."

Auggie laughed.

"You laugh now, but it's going to be your job to be sure they are entertained after we eat so I can clean up the kitchen," Annie whispered as they approached the table. During dinner Annie watched Auggie interact with her nieces, encouraging them to talk about their day at school and asking questions about their experiences. When they finished their meal, the girls raced each other to the family room to watch tv before they had to get ready for bed.

"Thank you for being so interested in their activities," Annie said. "You're amazing with them."

"I just do with them what my parents did with me and my brothers when we were that age. We always had interesting dinner conversations," Auggie remembered.

"Well, they enjoy my babysitting stents more when you're here," she told him as they cleared the table together and stacked the dishes on the counter. "Why don't you go check on the girls while I finish? Ask them to pick a book for their bedtime story, OK?"

The girls were engrossed in their Nickelodeon show and Auggie stood at the room's doorway trying to discern where they were. They weren't even giggling to give him a hint of their whereabouts. Chloe turned around and watched him leaning against the door frame. "Uncle Auggie, why don't you come in and sit down?"

"You two were so quiet that I didn't know where you are. I didn't want to step on you or sit on you," he said lightly.

Chloe jumped up from her place on the floor, ran over to Auggie and took his left hand. "We're sorry, Uncle Auggie. I forget you can't see where we are. Is it OK to sit on the sofa?"

Auggie smiled at Chloe's honesty and sincerity; and he let her lead him to the sofa, although he knew exactly where it was. As soon as he was seated, both girls clamored up to snuggle on either side of him and take turns describing the action of the cartoon show. When Annie came into the room, she smiled and shook her head at the scene, knowing there'd been no discussion about bedtime stories.

"Have you three decided on bedtime stories for tonight?" Annie asked mockingly.

"Uh oh," Auggie responded. "Girls, I think we're all in trouble with Auntie Annie, and it's my fault for shirking my responsibility. What stories do you want Annie to read to you tonight?"

Both girls giggled, scampered off the sofa and ran off to their playroom upstairs. Auggie turned to where he'd last heard Annie's voice and said, "Sorry. They were so into sharing their cartoons, I totally forgot to ask them."

"Face it, Anderson. You are such a pushover with kids."

"Am not."

"Yep. Pushover. I've watched you with your brothers' children and Chloe and Katia. Pushover."

Auggie stopped protesting, shrugged and smiled. A few moments later, the girls burst back into the room, each carrying a book. They made a beeline to Auggie, shoving a book into each of his hands. "Whoa, what's this?" he asked. "You remember, don't you, blind generally means not being able to read regular books?"

"They're not regular books, Uncle Auggie. Mommy found them on the computer and ordered them. She said you could read them to us sometime when you're here," Chloe explained.

"Yeah," Katia explained jumping up and down with excitement, "they have Braille bumps, real words AND pictures."

"Wow, that's a lot, isn't it," Auggie said as he smiled and patted Katia's back. "Now, why don't you go put on your jammies while I get familiar with these special, new books."

The girls raced up the stairs. "Elephants going up the steps couldn't make more noise," Annie chuckled. "You OK with the reading thing?"

"Sure. I'm touched that Dani thought to do this," Auggie said as he sat down and ran his hand over the cover of the first book, locating the title in Braille. "Help me with the layout of this book, will you?"

"Help me? Did I just hear Auggie Anderson say 'help me'?" Annie asked mockingly.

"Yes, help me. Give me a quick description, so I don't fumble too much. Are you happy, now? Two little girls have forced me into asking for help," Auggie countered good-naturedly.

Annie scooted close to him on the sofa and described the layout, how the Braille was on translucent sheets so the type and illustrations showed through. Auggie nodded. He realized he needed to read a page and then give the girls a chance to describe the illustration and talk about the story a minute before moving to the next page.

In record time, the girls brushed their teeth, put on their pajamas and ran down the stairs back to the family room to claim their spots on either side of Auggie. Annie sat by herself on the loveseat that was positioned in an L shape by the sofa. She'd swung her legs up in front of her facing Auggie and the girls. Auggie began to read the story, a tale of a little girl named Olivia who never went anywhere without her purse with all of her prized possessions filling it.

The story was a little young for Chloe, but it was just right for Katia. The girls took turns describing the whimsical illustrations; and Auggie was caught up in the educational aspect of the story, asking them questions. They each leaned against his sides and alternated between watching his fingers "read" the Braille cells and look up adoringly at his face. When everyone was totally distracted, Annie snapped a couple photos with her phone.

She wanted to remember this sweet moment forever. No worries, not terrorists, no hostages … a simple family night at home with three of the people she held dearest in her heart.

* * *

><p>Auggie woke up early Saturday morning and slipped into Annie's small bathroom to shower before he headed into the office for a few hours. Annie heard the water running and got up to make coffee, so he would have a cup to sip on during the ride to Langley. He came out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist and was only slightly startled by Annie's perky "Good morning."<p>

"Hi, and I thought I was being quiet," he said as he walked toward her voice and opened his arms for an early morning hug.

"You were, but I wanted to make sure you had some coffee. I figured you'd get a bagel or something at the food cart," Annie said as they hugged and kissed good morning. "I'll drive you in."

"No you won't. I've already called the car service. He'll be here in about 20 minutes. You get a little more sleep," Auggie said kissing Annie's forehead.

"Well, if you've already called the car service," Annie yawned.

Auggie dressed in jeans and a long sleeved dark blue polo shirt while Annie poured his coffee and secured the lid. As Auggie gathered his phone, money clip and change, id badge and cane, Annie pulled on a pair of sweat pants and a heavy hoodie jacket over her nightshirt. Auggie slipped into his leather jacket and Annie met him at the door holding two cups of coffee.

"Here's your coffee," she said holding it out waiting for him to extend his left hand. She placed the coffee in his hand and opened the door. Auggie stepped through the door and Annie, with her own cup, followed him through.

"Where do you think you're going?" Auggie asked.

"Humm, I'm going to wait for your car with you," she answered.

"You don't have to do that, you know."

"I do. But humor me."

Auggie went ahead of Annie down the hall to the elevator. Annie stayed a couple of steps behind him intentionally, allowing him to show her he not only could travel the world by himself when he wanted to, he could make it to the main entrance of her apartment building to meet his ride. When the elevator door opened on the main floor, Annie continued to follow him until he was on the sidewalk.

"Thanks for making coffee," Auggie said, "this hits the spot on a cool November morning."

"It does, doesn't it?" Annie answered. "Do you want me to pick you up at the office or meet you about twelve thirty at your place?"

Auggie thought a moment. "My place. If I get hung up, you can just hang at the apartment. If you come into the office, you might get an unexpected assignment and then we'd miss the adventure you have planned for us."

Annie looked up at him and smiled. Any aggravation he'd shown earlier at her wanting to walk out with him had disappeared. This morning was one of those rare times when Auggie just didn't "get it." He missed the point that she just wanted to spend a few extra minutes with him … she knew he was perfectly capable of getting to the front of the building by himself. The car pulled up and the driver lowered the passenger window. "Mornin' Auggie. You ready?" the driver asked.

* * *

><p>Annie arrived at Auggie's a little before noon. She wanted to get the bicycling paraphernalia unloaded and spread out on the bed before Auggie got home. She changed out of her jeans and light weight sweater and squirmed into her tight fitting bicycle pants and her new shirt. She sat on the edge of the bed to tie her sneakers. She surveyed the equipment on the bed and hoped Auggie would go along with her adventure.<p>

While she was waiting, Annie made a couple of turkey sandwiches and found a container of soup that Auggie had stored in the freezer. He pretended not to cook, but it was just an act. When he had time (and ingredients on hand) he made several amazing soups and a killer chili. Annie studied the soup and decided she had time to thaw it in the microwave and it would be the perfect amount with the sandwiches.

It was almost twelve forty-five when Auggie's key rattled in the apartment door. Annie was sitting at the island sipping a glass of tea and reading the paper she'd picked up when she stopped to buy some power bars and bottled water for Auggie's back pack. She turned on the stool, but before she could say anything he called out, "Annie! I do believe you found my stash of soup."

"I sure did. I hope that's ok, because it's thawed and ready to eat. I just have to give it a couple of more minutes to make sure it's hot."

"You know it's ok," Auggie laughed. "But I didn't think there was enough there for two."

"I made sandwiches, too. We're gonna need some energy for our afternoon adventure."

Auggie laid his cane and keys in their usual place at the end of the island. Annie kissed him quickly, poured him a glass of tea and pulled the soup out of the microwave to dish up. "Your sandwich is at your place, and I just put the tea at ten o'clock."

"Thanks," Auggie said as he sat on the stool and scooted up to the island. He picked up his glass of tea and took a long drink. Annie ladled the soup into bowls and pushed them across the island.

"Your bowl of soup is at three o'clock from your sandwich plate. The spoon is in the bowl," Annie said as she walked around the island to take a seat at the bar.

They ate quietly for a few minutes. Auggie broke the silence, "Are you going to tell me what we're doing this afternoon?"

"Finish eating, and then we'll discuss it and you can get dressed," Annie teased.

"Get dressed. Geez, Annie, I'm not liking the sound of this."

"Eat. You're going to need your strength."

Auggie finished his soup and sandwich, stacked the plate and bowl, and pushed them across the island. "OK, I cleaned my plate and bowl. Now, fess up. What have you planned?"

"I hope you're going to enjoy this," Annie said. "Come to the bedroom."

Auggie smiled devilishly.

"Auggie! No. I have our gear in the bedroom," Annie said.

"Gear? That's even better."

"Come on, climb out of the gutter and come with me," she said turning around and taking his hand."

Standing beside the bed, Annie picked up his bicycle pants and said, "Take off your jeans and put these on."

She handed him the pants. He felt them and a confused expression crossed his face. "Wear this in public."

"Yes. In public. They are bicycle pants. We're going bicycling. I've rented a tandem bicycle to ride on the bike trail."

"Annie, are you sure about that?"

"Yes, I am. Now get dressed. You have the pants in your hand and here's your shirt. I bought you black pants and a black and gray shirt. Your helmet is black with a gray stripe. You're going to look great," Annie said enthusiastically.

Auggie still hadn't started to get dressed. His devilish grin had dissolved into a pensive, almost troubled expression. "Annie, you know I'm all about staying in the background and not making a spectacle of myself. This has spectacle written all over it."

"No it doesn't. It's just two people on a bike ride, and I get to be the captain and call the shots this time. Now, stop back peddling on me and get dressed," she said emphatically.

Auggie took a deep breath. "Annie … do you realize what you're getting us into?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. I've done quite a lot of research on riding with a blind partner, and the owner of the bike rental shop and I went for a ride. I rode as both the captain and the passenger … or the stroker … the second rider is called the stroker," Annie explained. "When I rode in the stroker seat, I closed my eyes to get a good idea about what kind of experience it would be for you."

"Damnit, Annie … is there anything you won't research?" Auggie asked as he pulled off his shirt and pulled the bike shirt over his head.

"Blame yourself, Anderson. You always tell me to research every detail of a mission. That's what I did. We can do this. I can assure you there will be no spectacle involved. Just a fun afternoon on the trail," Annie explained making her case for the ride. She knew she'd won, because he'd put on the shirt and had sat on the bed to take off his jeans and put on the bike pants.

"Now," Auggie asked, "what's this about gear?"

"I got us each helmets, gloves and sturdy sports sunglasses with straps so they won't slip off our heads. I pulled out your lightweight nylon backpack and packed it with our polar fleece jackets, some power bars for a snack and I have water bottles cooling in the fridge," she explained as she handed him each of the items to inspect.

"Sun glasses? Really Annie?" he asked.

"Yes, sun glasses. It was either sunglasses or goggles. It's for eye protection. We don't want either one of us to end up in the emergency room getting something taken out of one of our eyes. The man at the shop said it was just as important for you because you wouldn't see debris blowing, and I might not be able to warn you in time."

Auggie pulled on the gloves and was surprised how well they fit. He picked up the helmet and unfastened the chin strap. "Try it on," Annie said, "if it's too tight, we can take out some of the padding. If it's too loose, there's some extra padding that we can add."

"Looks like it's too tight like this. Will you help me adjust it. I don't want to mess up something," Auggie said holding the helmet out to Annie.

Annie took a couple of layers of padding out, made sure the remaining padding was secure and handed it back. Auggie pushed the helmet on his head adjusted it and secured the chin strap. "That's about perfect," he said with a hint of a smile.

Annie finished packing the backpack with their small items and her wallet, phone and ID. She told Auggie what she'd done and that there was room for him to stash his cane, wallet, phone and ID, too. Auggie took the back pack to the island to finish packing while Annie pulled the water out of the fridge. She stuffed the waters in the outside pocket of the backpack and told Auggie she had their helmets.

Auggie carried the pack by its straps and used his cane to follow Annie to her car. Annie chattered about everything and nothing as they walked to the car to give Auggie a reference to follow. In the car he was quiet, and Annie almost had second thoughts.

"Thank you for doing this for me, even though you seem to have some apprehensions," Annie said as she pulled into the parking lot at the rental shop. "There are a few cars in the lot, but no one's around; so you don't need to worry about the spectacle thing."

"Good to know. I don't like trying new things with an audience," he admitted.

"This isn't exactly new for either one of us, Auggie. We both grew up riding our bicycles all over heck and half of Georgia. Well for you Glencoe and for me a bunch of Army bases … but you get the idea." Annie said as she got out of the car. Auggie stuffed his folded cane into the back pack, picked it up by the straps and took Annie's arm to go into the shop.

"How did you know I spent a lot of time on a bike when I was growing up?" Auggie asked.

"You don't think I'd ask you to do this if I weren't sure you were an expert at riding a bicycle, do you?" Annie asked. "I called your mother."

"Oh."

"Miss Walker, good to see you again," the shop proprietor called out. "I'll meet you out front."

A few minutes later he wheeled the tandem bicycle around to them and after Auggie had a few minutes to inspect the bike, Annie straddled the front of it and held it steady while Auggie was given instructions on how to mount it safely. After they had secured their helmets, Annie and Auggie circled the open area of the parking lot under the watchful gaze of the shop owner.

Annie was calling out what she was doing to Auggie and he was following her cues. "I'm going to start braking now, so be prepared to help me hold up the bike when we stop. I'll put my left leg down," Annie said. Auggie concentrated on the movement of the bicycle and Annie's body to help her steady the bicycle when they stopped.

The shopkeeper observed their riding skills and when they came to a stop, he walked up to them and said, "I think you're ready to take out on the trail. You both look comfortable on the bike, and you work well together. Be careful, watch for bumps, and remember I close at six."

"Thanks," Annie said. She turned back to Auggie to ask, "Are you comfortable enough with me now to hit the trail?"

Auggie made his thinking face before smiling. "I'm fine as long as you feel comfortable doing this," he said even though he still had his reservations about the ride. Well, not the ride itself as much as being a little worried about them getting into a situation where he wouldn't of much help. He told himself to stop worrying. He had an encrypted cell phone with gps in it. If they ran into a problem, he'd at least be able to solve it by calling for help giving emergency personnel a location. He smiled again as he thought to himself, "I'll always figure out a way to make Annie's safety my first priority."

Annie looked over her shoulder and said, "You look pretty deep in thought. Are you ready to head up the trail?"

"Sure am. Are we putting the right pedal down and pushing off with the left pedal?" he asked.

"Yep," Annie answered.

They started slowly, but were steady and Annie steered them onto the trail. "This part of the trail is flat and pretty straight, so we can test getting up some speed," Annie yelled back at Auggie. "Just don't let your feet slip, cause the pedals keep going and you could get some dandy bruises."

"Aye, aye, Captain," Auggie teased.

They pedaled up the trail for about a mile. Between calling out which way the trail curved, rough patches and whether she was breaking or needed some extra power for a little hill, she described the remaining colors on the trees and the landscape. Auggie appreciated Annie's commentary on their surroundings, but what he was appreciating the most was the speed and the feel of rushing air on his face.

"We're approaching a down-hill stretch followed by an incline," Annie warned, "then there's a curvy part of the trail where it follows a meandering creek. Are you ready for that?"

"Sounds like fun. Let's get up some speed going down, so it'll be easier going up the hill," Auggie responded. "Tell me when you want me to really power down for the hill."

"Will do," Annie yelled back. "You're getting into this."

They were on the trail alone, so Annie felt comfortable with asking Auggie to help her amp up the speed half way down the hill to make the climb of the incline easier. Although slowed at the top of the hill, they still had decent speed to coast through the first curves by the creek.

"There are some picnic tables ahead," Annie said, "are you ready to take a break?"

"Sure, if you are."

"Get ready to break, stop and help me steady the bike so we can get off," Annie instructed.

Once off the bike and sitting on the picnic bench leaning against the table, Auggie patted Annie's thigh and said, "I was wrong in doubting how much fun that could be. I guess I didn't like the idea of not being able to captain the bike."

Annie took his hand, squeezed it and stretched up to kiss him on the cheek. "Doesn't matter, Auggie, cause you gotta know you're always going to be my captain. Besides, there's a box full of military insignias back in Illinois that prove it."

Auggie responded only with a slight smile and a gentle squeeze of Annie's hand. They sat for a time and enjoyed the warmth of the November sun through the cool breeze. "This is fun." Annie said as she pulled the water bottles out of the backpack. "It's kinda nice to pretend we're just government employees enjoying a typical Saturday afternoon in D.C."

"I never knew you aspired to normalcy," Auggie responded.

"Generally, I don't. But sometimes it's nice to spend a normal afternoon like this," Annie explained. She handed Auggie a bottle of water and dug out a power bar. "Want to share this power bar?"

"Sure," Auggie said holding out his hand for his half. "And, you're thinking that riding the trail on a tandem bike with a blind guy qualifies as a normal weekend activity."

Taking a slow swig of water, Annie thought rather than making a hasty reply. "Well, Soldier Boy, it's as close to normal as I'm willing to go."

Auggie smiled and let out a little chuckle as he gave Annie a shoulder check. They both laughed.

"Let's head back," Auggie suggested. "We can get cleaned up, and I'll take you out for a nice dinner. We'll continue the charade of doing what normal people do on weekends in D.C."

"Sounds good to me," Annie said as she stashed their water bottles.

* * *

><p>Going back to the bicycle, Auggie suggested he get on the bike first since he was taller and it would be easier to steady it for Annie. She looked up at Auggie and smiled. "Sure, that's great," she said.<p>

Auggie nodded and smiled.

Annie's smile grew wider as she realized that no matter what they encountered, Auggie would always figure out a way to be her protector. They got on the bike and enjoyed the return ride.

When they returned the bike, the shop owner commented he hoped they had enjoyed their afternoon. As Auggie unsnapped the chin strap on his helmet, he said, "We did enjoy it. I'm sure you'll be seeing us again … especially since we've invested in this gear."

Walking to the car, Auggie draped his arm over Annie's shoulder. She looked up at him and asked, "Did you really enjoy the afternoon?"

"I'm almost embarrassed to admit how much I enjoyed it," Auggie said squeezing her shoulder.

Driving out of the parking lot, Annie asked what he had in mind for dinner. "You are thinking casual, aren't you? I don't have anything at your place except a pantsuit and shirt for work and casual things."

"I was thinking of the Italian place a couple of blocks from the apartment. My neighbors say the food is good, it's in walking distance, and we can go casual," Auggie said.

* * *

><p>Annie and Auggie sauntered down the street to the restaurant about seven thirty. The sun was down and the fall air was crisp and invigorating. Auggie was using his cane and Annie had casually looped her right arm around his left arm. As they walked her hand slipped down to his and their fingers entwined as they walked and chatted. "Here it is," Annie said as she changed their direction and walked toward the door.<p>

The warm aroma of garlic, olive oil, basil and tomatoes greeted them as they opened the door to the busy restaurant. The hostess asked how many in the party and then led them to a two-top table along the brick wall near the back of the room. On their way to the table, several people from the neighborhood yelled out to greet Auggie, who waved and smiled in the direction of the voices.

Annie described how the room was arranged and that the tables were not especially close together. The hostess placed the menus on the table and Auggie, pulled Annie's chair out for her before trailing his hand along the table to his chair. Before Annie had a chance to pick up her menu, the waiter appeared with water and asked what else they would like to drink. Auggie suggested a bottle of merlot, to which Annie responded, "That's perfect." Then, she asked the waiter, "Do you have a Braille menu?"

Initially, the waiter looked confused, but Annie smiled and glanced in Auggie's direction. "I don't know, but I'll find out right now."

"Annie, you didn't have to do that," Auggie said. "I would have been happy with you reading the menu."

"I know, but we've never been here before. I know you like to read your own menu when one's available."

The waiter returned with the menu for Auggie. He took the menu from the table and replaced it saying, "Here you go, sir."

Auggie thanked him and picked up the menu to check out his choices for dinner. When the waiter was out of earshot, Annie let out a little giggle. "What's that about?" Auggie smiled.

"Oh, the waiter is a little flummoxed waiting on you. It's kind of amusing … he'll get the hang of it after we come back a few times," Annie shared.

"That's not nice, Annie Walker," Auggie said with a little smile.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know, Slugger … making fun of other people."

"I find my amusement where ever I can find it," Annie explained.

* * *

><p>After they had feasted on house salad, eggplant parmesan, lasagna and wine, Annie and Auggie strolled leisurely back to his apartment. Both feeling the warmth of the bottle of wine they shared, neither had closed their jackets. They held hands and talked about what might happen next week at the office. Since they had asked for time off around Thanksgiving, they doubted Annie would be sent off on any missions that could run the risk of interfering with her holiday.<p>

"I guess I'll be doing some more stretches on the Russian watch desk or one of the South American desks," Annie said thoughtfully.

"Look at the bright side," Auggie offered, "we'll have a little stretch of time to spend some evenings together before Thanksgiving."

* * *

><p>Well, Annie pulled off her surprise and to her delight, Auggie enjoyed himself. Check back at the next update to see what happens when they leave to spend time in Glencoe. Thanks so much form reading.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5 Leaving for Illinois

Annie and Auggie go to Illinois for the holiday and this time Annie's the one who's surprised. Read on to find out how.

Thanks for the alerts and the comments. I write the stories for my own amusement, but it's so much fun to share. Now, this is where I need to remind you that this is for pure fun and I have no association with the crew at Covert Affairs.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5 – Leaving for Illinois<strong>

The Monday before Thanksgiving Annie and Auggie stayed in their respective homes to pack and get organized for the trip to Illinois. Annie called Auggie several times to double check what activities Amanda Anderson would have in mind for them so she would know what kind of clothes to pack. Finally, Auggie told her, "If you don't think you have what you need when we get there, we'll go shopping. Please stop worrying. Mom has always commented on what great taste you have in the way you dress."

"Easy for you to say. You have a whole closet full of clothes there to choose from, plus you understand the nuances of your family. I'm still trying to get a handle on it," Annie almost complained.

Early Tuesday morning, Annie loaded her suitcase and carry-on tote bag into the hatch of her car and drove off to Auggie's, where she tapped on the door and let herself in. "Auggie," she yelled, "are you about ready?"

"Almost," he answered from the bedroom. "Just a couple of things I need to put in my shaving kit and zip up the suitcase."

"Anything you want me to check?" Annie asked as she looked around the apartment to see if something might be out of place.

"Make sure the coffeemaker and toaster are unplugged … other than that, I think we're cool."

"You didn't make coffee this morning?"

"Nope. Thought I could bribe you to drive through a Starbucks on the way to the airport."

Auggie slung the messenger bag with the computer and "necessary" electronics across his body and raised the handle on his suitcase. He collected his cane and keys and they left the apartment. Annie walked ahead with Auggie following the sound of her footsteps. As they stepped onto the sidewalk Annie slowed down and said, "The car's about two o'clock. There aren't any tree or sign hazards in the way."

Auggie just nodded and kept walking without taking her arm, so Annie walked ahead and opened the hatch. Auggie followed the sound of the hatch opening, located the curb with his cane and carefully stepped down and lowered the pull handle of the suitcase. He located the back bumper of the car with his cane. He stopped and felt into the hatch to locate Annie's bags before lifting his into the empty space. He removed the messenger bag and laid it on top of the suitcase.

Annie watched with a bemused expression. She didn't dare offer to help, she'd learned.

"That's everything," Auggie announced. Stepping back and reaching up he said, "We can close the hatch."

Annie stepped back and said, "Ready to close 'er up." Auggie slammed the hatch shut and trailed the back of his hand alongside the passenger side of the car to the front door. After a quick stop at the coffee drive-thru, they were on their way to Reagan National.

At Auggie's suggestion, Annie parked in the more expensive but much closer parking area. "It's more convenient than us dragging our bags onto the busses," Auggie explained, "and it's my treat."

Annie wanted to argue with him, but she realized it would be much easier for him; and sometimes she forgot that he could afford more than the occasional splurge. Once through security, they had about 45 minutes until boarding began. Annie had picked up a morning newspaper on the way to the gate and she was getting comfortable to start reading … more whispering … the headlines to Auggie when her tummy rumbled and growled.

Auggie laughed. "Didn't you eat dinner last night."

"I did, but I guess I didn't eat very much. I was worried about packing the right things," Annie admitted.

Auggie pulled out his money clip and extracted two ten dollar bills. "Here," he said, "I'm kinda hungry, too. Why don't you go find us some more coffee and a scone to share. We're in first class today, so we should be served breakfast on the plane."

Annie took the money and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. "Sounds good. I'll be right back." She walked back a couple of gates to a Starbucks where she found a cinnamon scone to go with their coffee. Returning to their gate, Annie broke into a smile when she saw Auggie waiting for her, listening to his tunes with his arm draped over her floral fabric carry-on. His eyes were closed and he looked like all the other weary travelers who'd gotten up earlier than usual to make their flights.

"Hey, you ready for more coffee and a snack?" Annie asked as she sat down beside him. They enjoyed their shared snack while Annie whispered her observations about their fellow passengers. Auggie would hear a voice or a snatch of a conversation and give Annie his description of the person. Annie laughed at how close some of his descriptions were. "Sometimes you are just scary," Annie whispered.

Auggie chuckled, "Just good spy craft … being able to get a bead on your surroundings and the people in it, whether you can see or not."

The ticket agent called for First Class passengers to board, and Auggie handed Annie her carry-on bag and they started to the jetway. After taking a few steps, Auggie sensed the crowd. He squeezed Annie's arm and stopped. Annie stopped while Auggie took a few seconds to pull his folded cane out of his messenger bag and unfold it. After he'd tapped the cane to lock it, Annie asked quietly, "Ready?"

Auggie nodded and with a sweep of his cane smiled and said, "This will keep the other passengers from jostling us too much."

Auggie was right, the other passengers slowed down and gave Auggie a little extra space to maneuver as he showed his boarding pass and negotiated the jet way. Entering the plane, Annie greeted the attendant and waited for Auggie to catch up to her. "We're in seats 4 A and B. Do you want inside or the aisle?"

Laughing at the question, Auggie said, "You take the window seat. I think you'll get more use out of the window."

Annie punched him in the arm. "I'm going to put my bag under the seat. Where are you going to stash the messenger bag?"

"Under the seat."

As Annie slipped into her seat she put Auggie's hand on the armrest of his seat, and he followed her in. "You know, travelling alone is not nearly as much fun as traveling you," he whispered seductively as he settled in.

As the flight approached the airport, Annie asked who in the family was meeting them. "No one," Auggie answered. "I rented a car for us. I thought it would be nice to have our own car for errands or to just get away by ourselves if we want to."

"What am I going to be driving around Chicago this weekend?" Annie asked.

"Hmmm … I reserved a Cadillac Escalade with four-wheel drive … just in case we have a surprise white Thanksgiving," Auggie said.

"Auggie! That will cost a fortune," Annie fussed. "Besides, I didn't pay any attention how we got to your home when we came back for the wedding in August."

"Let me worry about the cost. And, the car I reserved has a GPS in it, so you can put in the address and follow the directions. Although, I could get us home without the GPS," Auggie explained. "I made sure we had the GPS in case we need to go somewhere I'm not familiar with … or don't remember … you know how Mom comes up with errands for us."

Annie laughed and shook her head. "There you go … thinking of everything."

Auggie smiled smugly and quietly said, "Yep."

* * *

><p>Making their way down the concourse to baggage claim, Auggie took the belt and suspenders approach to negotiating the crowd by using his cane and keeping a firm grasp on Annie's right elbow. Annie found their baggage carousel and staked out a place to wait for their bags to come out. Auggie dropped his grasp on Annie's arm, and she wrapped her arms around his while they waited.<p>

Anne scanned the baggage area and found the car rental shuttle sign. "It looks like we're going to have to take a shuttle over to car rental," she reported with a little worry in her voice.

"We'll manage fine," Auggie said. "It'll be worth it when we have our own car for the week."

* * *

><p>With their bags loaded in the back of the Escalade, Annie started to get acquainted with the luxury rental car and the GPS. After a few minutes of sitting quietly and letting Annie get her bearings in the unfamiliar car, Auggie spoke up, "OK, can you give me a quick tour of the dash, so I can turn on the radio?"<p>

Annie laughed. "Sure." She took his left hand, put it on the top of the dash and slowly slid it down to the radio area and its controls, explaining each knob and push button. Auggie closed his eyes and scrunched up his face in concentration to memorize the controls. Annie continued the tactile tour of the SUV's bells and whistles. When she finished, she threw her arms around Auggie and with a big kiss thanked him for surprising her with the car rental.

As they pulled out of the parking lot, the GPS voice guided Annie into traffic. Auggie called Amanda to report they had arrived with their bags and were on their way to the house. Amanda told him not to stop for lunch, because she had soup and salad waiting for them if they were hungry. "I'll tell Annie. She just mentioned she wanted to find a place to get a bite to eat."

Driving up Lake Shore Drive, Annie began to recognize some landmarks and relaxed. They pulled into the driveway a little after one in the afternoon, and Amanda was running down the front walk before Annie had the ignition turned off. She warned Auggie his mom was getting up a head of steam and to brace himself. He laughed, opened the door and got out of the vehicle.

Amanda yelled, "Auggie!" and hugged him tightly for a long time. Auggie couldn't resist picking her up just a little as he returned the hug and kissed the top of her head. Annie walked around to the passenger side smiling at the scene. Her mother had told her once to carefully observe how a man treated his mother and she could get a good idea about how he would treat her.

Amanda stepped out of the hug with Auggie and threw her arms around Annie. "I am so happy you two are here." She stepped back and looked at Annie. Patting Annie's cheek, Amanda said, "You get more beautiful every time I see you."

Annie blushed and stammered, "Thank you."

"Let's take your things into the house, and then we can have a bite of lunch," Amanda said.

Once the bags were piled in the foyer, Auggie carried his bag up to his bedroom. On his second trip to carry up Annie's bag, she and Amanda followed him up the stairs and to the bedroom. Amanda stayed several steps behind them. Auggie took several steps into the bedroom and sat down Annie's bag. Annie flipped on the light as she walked into the room, stopped and gasped.

"Annie? Is something wrong?" Auggie asked in a worried tone.

"Nothing's wrong. It's just that your mother has put a king-size bed in the room with a lovely new comforter."

"Mom, what did you do?"

Amanda stepped in between the couple and put her hands on their backs. "I want you to be comfortable when you visit, so I bought a king-size bed. When you're not here, we use this room occasionally for other guests, and I just thought it made sense to make the change," Amanda explained.

"Thanks, Mom," Auggie whispered.

"Thank you," Annie said, "But it wasn't necessary. The other bed was very comfortable."

"Comfortable, yes, but not a king. This one is a comfortable king … I hope," Amanda said patting them each on the shoulder. "Now … freshen up and I'll have some soup and sandwiches ready for you by the time you come downstairs."

After lunch, Auggie and Annie unpacked and wandered back downstairs. Amanda was sitting at the breakfast table finishing her shopping list for Thanksgiving. She looked up as Annie and Auggie walked through to the family room. "Does anyone want to help me finish the grocery shopping?"

Annie smiled and said, "Sure."

Auggie made a face, shook his head and said, "Please don't make me go to a grocery store two days before Thanksgiving. You two go, and I'll be glad to carry everything in for you."

"We're going to take you up on that offer," Amanda said. "Will you be ok while we're gone?"

"Mom, I grew up in this house. You haven't done any major furniture rearranging have you?" Auggie asked with a little exasperation in his voice.

Slamming down her pen Amanda answered, "Nope. Water bottles are in the second shelf of the fridge door and the beer is in the fridge under your dad's bar in the family room," Amanda said.

Auggie grimaced and said, "Thanks, I'll be fine. Just tell me where the remote is before you leave."

* * *

><p>Annie and Amanda climbed into Amanda's SUV about 20 minutes later. As she started the car, she commented she hoped she hadn't insulted Auggie by accidentally implying he wouldn't be all right in his own home alone for an hour or two. "I just didn't mean it that way," Amanda said shaking her head. "We almost over reacted back there, didn't we?"<p>

"I bet he realizes that," Annie reassured Amanda. "Maybe he needs a little quiet time. We've been so busy lately."

A few minutes after Annie and Amanda left the house, Auggie pulled a beer out of the small fridge under his dad's bar and sipped on it as he paced up and down the foyer hall until he began to calm down. He found himself in the living room, checking out the location of the furniture. When he approached the far end of the room, he extended his right hand until it made contact with the baby grand piano. Auggie followed the contour of the instrument around to the keyboard and the bench.

He sighed heavily. It had been so long since he'd played a piano. The house was empty. He tapped at the keys on the high end of the register and cautiously took another short step to locate the bench with his leg. He pulled out the bench and sat down. He polished off the bottle of beer and sat it on the floor. He tapped absent mindedly on a couple of keys, stopped and started to get up. But he couldn't. The pull of the music was too great.

Auggie took a deep breath, located middle C, positioned his hands on the keyboard and played a couple of scales and warm-up exercises he remembered. He surprised himself. Auggie Anderson, the soldier, the jock was also a talented musician … something that he'd managed to keep hidden from most people. He had been surprised that Annie had never asked who played the piano. But, then a lot of large homes had a grand piano as accent furniture.

He checked his watch and figured he had time to get a cold beer, find a coaster and spend a few minutes improvising some of his now beloved jazz before his mom and Annie returned from the store. As he played, he was surprised at how well tuned the piano was. He pounded out the beat of one loud improvisation; and when the tension began to leave his body, he relaxed he began playing a softer, more melodic version of a jazz tune. Auggie lost himself in creativity and music. He lost track of time and did not hear the garage door open and close or the door from the garage into the house open.

Annie and Amanda each had picked up a couple of bags of groceries to carry in. Annie opened the door, and stopped when she heard the music. "Auggie sure has the stereo cranked up," Annie remarked to Amanda.

Amanda listened for a moment. She smiled and shook her head before whispering, "That's not the stereo. That's Auggie at the piano. Sounds like he's taking out his frustration on the keyboard."

Annie shot a quizzical look at Amanda. "He plays the piano, too?" she whispered. "Is there anything he's not good at?"

"Whatever he decides to do, he does well," Amanda whispered. They quietly sat the groceries on the breakfast table and walked across the foyer to the living room entry. They stood in the doorway listening and watching Auggie play. After a few minutes, he stopped to take a sip of beer, and Annie said softly, "Anderson … you've been holding out on me. When were you going to tell me you played the piano?"

Auggie smiled and huffed. "The subject has never come up, has it?" Trying to change the subject, he stood up and said, "I bet I have a car load of groceries to carry in."

"Yep, we filled up the hatch with goodies, for sure," Annie said as Auggie walked toward her. "Were you ever going to let me in on your musical secret?"

"You never asked about the piano. I didn't want to brag," he said teasingly.

"Mmmm, this could be construed as lying by omission," Annie shot back.

"We're in the CIA. We're taught to lie … or deceive." As soon as that statement was out of his mouth, Auggie mentally kicked himself.

Annie stopped walking and whirled around to face Auggie. "What else have you been deceptive about?"

"Annie," he said while taking a deep breath, "I have been as open with you as I can be with anyone. You know that, I hope. Talking about 12 years of piano lessons plus college piano courses was not on my radar to discuss. There's no need to be angry."

"I'm not angry, Auggie. I'm surprised and maybe a little hurt that you never said anything about being such a prodigy on the piano," Annie said. "I guess I'm a little jealous. I always wanted to learn to play the piano, but we moved so much that finding a teacher never worked out," Annie explained while taking Auggie's hand. "Now, we'd better finish unloading the groceries."

Auggie put his arm around Annie as they walked down the hall to the garage entrance. Once in the garage, Auggie told Annie to hand him the heavier bags. She handed him a couple of bags to carry in his left hand and picked up four lighter ones for herself. "Annie?" Auggie asked holding out his empty right hand, "I have another hand to carry groceries."

Annie stopped. "Oh. OK. I thought you'd need your right hand to …"

"… help guide me back to the kitchen?" Auggie finished the sentence with a question.

"Yes. Judging from your wanting more bags, I thought wrong."

Auggie chuckled. "I keep reminding you. I grew up in this house; and I can move freely. Hand over the sacks."

Annie passed off the sacks she was carrying in her right hand to Auggie and reached into the car to grab two more bags. Auggie walked ahead of her cautiously and stepped up through the door into the laundry room with ease and sauntered into the kitchen. He did, however, stop at the doorway to the kitchen to ask his mother where she wanted the groceries.

Amanda told them both to put everything on the breakfast table for unpacking, and Annie said she thought they could finish unloading the car in only two more trips. "Did you two leave any food at the store for anyone else to buy? You know, grocery shopping is not competitive."

Actually it took three trips back to the car, and they not only filled the breakfast table with sacks but part of the island. With everything unloaded, Annie started unpacking the purchases and folding the bags. Auggie took a couple of steps back from the table and looking just a tad lost in the bustle asked, "What can I do to help without getting in the way?"

Amanda turned to survey the kitchen and smiled at the chaos she'd created. "You're in charge of everything on the table. Take everything out of the bags, and Annie and I'll get the cold and frozen items stashed first."

"You mean I'm not going to be sent to the family room to keep me out of the way?" Auggie teased.

"Nope, buddy. You're going to be eating out of my refrigerator for a long weekend, so you have to work for your supper," Amanda shot back.

By the time the groceries were put away, it was time for Amanda to start dinner. Fred had promised her he would try to be home by six this evening. Annie had made a pot of coffee a little earlier, and now she and Auggie were relaxing at the breakfast table sipping the brew. Amanda poured herself a cup and joined them.

"Anyone else joining us for dinner tonight?" Auggie asked.

"No … it will be just the four of us tonight,"

"Thanks, Mom. That's the way I like it the first night at home," Auggie said with a devilish smile.

"Auggie, that's terrible," Annie said with a slap to his arm.

"No it's not. We've had a long day and it's going to be great to have a quiet dinner to visit with Mom and Dad. There will be more than enough of the full family the rest of the holiday," he said between sips of coffee.

"OK kids … enough of this relaxing."

Both Annie and Auggie sat up straight in their chairs as Amanda started handing out dinner chores. She handed Annie a box of brownie mix with instructions to get started on dessert. She pulled out a giant mixing bowl and piled it full of salad vegetables that needed cleaning and chopping. "Auggie, you're on salad duty tonight," she said as she sat the bowl beside the small sink in the island. "You know where the cutting boards and knife block are. Choose your own weapons."

Auggie smiled as he walked toward where he heard the bowl meet the marble counter of the island. Annie and Amanda glanced at each other and smiled. It had taken Amanda Anderson the full four years since Auggie lost his sight to realize he didn't need or want to be waited on. He preferred being part of the action, even if the action was as simple as making salad for a family dinner.

Amanda put a dry rub on the four filets, so they would be seasoned for Fred to grill when he came home. She'd pop the twice baked potatoes into the oven after Annie's brownies were baked and cooling. Annie mixed the brownies and poured them into the baking pan while Auggie rinsed the vegetables and laid them out on paper towels to dry. He pulled open the drawer where he remembered his mother storing bowls and tried to find an appropriate bowl for the prepared vegetables.

Amanda turned when she heard rattling in the island cabinet. "Looking for something in particular?" she asked. Auggie explained what he was hunting. Amanda resisted reaching over to help him, and said, "The largest bowl in the stack to your right will work fine."

Auggie pulled out the bowl and went to work peeling and slicing cucumbers, cleaning and grating carrots, coring and chopping a red pepper and tearing a half a head of lettuce. When the brownies were in the oven and the timer set, Annie poured herself another cup of coffee and made herself comfortable on the bar stool across from where Auggie was working. "You want another cup of coffee?" She asked him.

"Maybe later," he answered popping a cherry tomato into his mouth. "Hey, Mom, do you want me to halve the tomatoes and toss them in the salad or keep them whole for garnish?"

"Let's just keep them back and sprinkle a few on each salad," Amanda said. She turned around to watch Auggie toss the salad. "That looks good, Auggie … Annie, will you get the plastic wrap out of the pantry, so we can cover it and stash it in the fridge til it's time to eat?"

Annie retrieved the wrap and pulled off a sheet to cover the salad while Auggie bagged the remaining vegetables and cleaned the counter. Annie put the salad in the fridge and Auggie handed her the bags of vegetables to stash in the vegetable bin. Their fingers touched during the process and they each smiled. "You ready for that coffee now, Piano Man?"

"Ouch. That hurt … but I can pour my own coffee, thank you," he said as he turned to take a mug out of the cabinet.

Amanda had gone upstairs to her office to make some phone calls while the brownies finished baking, leaving Annie and Auggie alone. Annie used their being alone to ask Auggie why he'd never mentioned his skill at the piano to her. "Auggie, I'm not really angry. I'm surprised and a little hurt you never told me."

Auggie fidgeted with the coffee mug running his finger around its rim before raising his head and trying to look toward Annie to answer. "I didn't think it was that important. It's not like I was sneaking out three nights a week to play at a piano bar in Georgetown. Besides," he said with one of his self-deprecating grins, "a blind guy who plays the piano seems so cliché."

Amanda had come back downstairs and was walking down the hall when she heard their discussion. She stopped and stood quietly … not to eavesdrop so much as to not interrupt so Auggie would answer Annie's question.

It was Annie's turn to study the coffee that remained in her mug before sighing, "August Anderson … there is nothing cliché about you or anything you do. But I'll keep your secret."

Auggie's hand trailed along the edge of the island until he was standing next to Annie. He found her shoulders and put his hands on them so they were facing each other. "I wasn't keeping it a secret … really. You were going to find out Thursday evening anyway when we drag out the Christmas tree after dinner and start decorating. I'm the official musical accompaniment for Christmas decorating. I've done it for years and can't get out of it." He kissed her forehead and said, "Unless it's a matter of national security and above your clearance, I promise not to keep secrets from you."

Annie took a slap at his chest and shook her head. She was about to tell him he was a mess when the oven timer alerted them that the brownies were ready. She pulled out the brownie pan and set it on a trivet on the island. "I'm going to make a quick trip upstairs to freshen up," she told Auggie as Amanda sauntered back into the kitchen.

When Amanda heard Annie's footsteps in the upstairs hall, she turned to her son. "Auggie, I am curious why you never mentioned to Annie about the piano. What else have you not told her?"

"Well, as difficult as it was to talk about, I did tell her the whole story about what happened to me in Iraq, but I haven't shared a whole lot about rehab ... just some bits and pieces. And, I've never told her all the details about the trust fund. I've only alluded to the fact that I have some money other than my government job. Why?"

Amanda put her diminutive hand on her son's shoulder gently and said, "I don't want either one of you overreacting and getting upset over something like we went through last spring when Annie found your dress uniform."

"Mom, you know it's not my nature to talk a lot about myself. Plus, I've been trained to keep things close and not share much," Auggie said softly.

"Well, I'm sure Annie understands these things intellectually, but it may be a different picture emotionally," Amanda said as she patted Auggie's shoulder. "She's smart and talented, but she is a woman in love."

Auggie nodded his agreement.

"And that kind of brings me to my next question," Amanda said lightly. "Are you two trying to set some kind of record for the length of a pre-engagement relationship?"

Auggie shook his head. "Mom, before Annie and I met, someone hurt her very badly. Then, when she first joined the Agency, she had a couple of dinner dates with Jai Wilcox; and Joan told her to be cautious about becoming involved with CIA men because we're all duplicitous. You know that Tash was the reason I went to Iraq. You put two people with our backgrounds together, and you have a really long pre-engagement relationship. Even though we spend most of our time together, we agree we need to take our relationship slow. We're committed to each other, but if I'm afraid I'll spook her if I throw an engagement ring into the mix."

Amanda was thoughtful before she spoke. "I understand, Auggie. It's just that I want both you and Annie to be settled and happy."

"I think it will happen when it's supposed to," Auggie whispered. "I hope I'm astute enough to recognize when it's time."

* * *

><p>Isn't it refreshing to know that Auggie and Amanda can get really frustrated with each other? They are a pretty normal family, after all. Thank you, everyone for reading. I'm kind of amazed at how many hits my stories receive. Later.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6 Time at Home

In this chapter, our young spy couple spends the evening relaxing with Auggie's parents and planning out their holiday activities. But they sense something may interfere.

Anyway, this part of the story was fun to write, so I hope you have some fun reading it and imagining them hanging out at Auggie's childhood home in Glencoe. I own no interest in Covert Affairs, but today I did receive my dvd of Answer This, the movie that stars Chris Gorham ... but I digress. Thank's for reading. I appreciate your kind comments and interest in my story.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6 – Time at Home<strong>

Annie freshened up and unpacked before rejoining Auggie and Amanda in the kitchen. With dinner ready for a few finishing touches and Fred's firing up the gas grill when he came home, Annie and Auggie decided to enjoy a beer before dinner. Amanda opted for a glass of wine. They made themselves comfortable in the family room; and after a few sips, Auggie raised his bottle and offered a toast "to an amazing Thanksgiving."

He felt bad about his mini meltdown earlier, but couldn't make himself apologize for making an important point. The toast was as close to "sorry" as he would get.

Fred arrived home shortly after six and commented on how every time Auggie was home, he felt like he had missed the best part of the party by the time he got home from the office. Fred gave Auggie and Annie each warm hugs before disappearing to change into his cool weather casual clothes … comfortable jeans and a faded Northwestern sweatshirt.

With Fred's coming home, they moved back to the kitchen to keep Amanda company while she finished dinner. Annie relished the warmth of Auggie's parents and the love she felt when she was in this house. Auggie was sitting to her right at the island sipping out of the beer bottle he held in his right hand and bantering with his mother. Annie reached across the island top and laid her hand over Auggie's with a gentle squeeze. Auggie turned his head toward her and smiled. "Thank you," Annie whispered.

"For what?"

"For making me feel a part of your family. I feel as at home and comfortable with your family as I do with my own," Annie said quietly.

Lowering his head so that their foreheads met, Auggie said, "You're welcome. But you have to realize they're going to adore you because you're always in cahoots with them to get me back to Glencoe."

* * *

><p>The dinner discussion included plans for the rest of the week. Fred proudly announced he was able to reschedule appointments so that he could spend Wednesday at home to help with preparations for Thanksgiving. "Good," Amanda said, "I need all the help I can get. We have a lot to do."<p>

"Again with the planning, Mom. Thanksgiving is not a military maneuver," Auggie said.

"Almost," Amanda said. "When you consider I have a big meal to oversee, Christmas decorations to organize for tree decorating after dinner and a house full of people, it feels like a military maneuver."

Amanda smiled at Annie and winked before she continued. "Here's my plan for tomorrow. Auggie, you and your dad will get the Christmas decorations ready to bring upstairs after dinner. That shouldn't take too long, and then you'll be available to help your dad run errands and still have time to relax. Annie, if you don't mind, Cynthia and I could use your help in the kitchen. You don't mind, do you?"

"I'd love to help. Just tell me what you need and how you want it done. I'm no wizard in the kitchen, but I know my way around a little," Annie laughed.

"Well," Amanda mused, "You did a mighty fine job with the brownies this afternoon."

"I follow directions really well," Annie said, taking the last sip of the beer she'd enjoyed with dinner.

"Yeah, right," Auggie whispered under his breath. Annie elbowed him in the ribs.

After brownie sundaes for dessert and a couple of hours relaxing in the family room visiting with the television playing in the background, Fred and Amanda decided to call it a night. As Fred got up from his chair, he held up the remote and asked, "Who wants to be captain of the remote?"

Auggie held out his hand. "That would be me. I don't get to captain too much on my own these days," he teased … casually referring to his and Annie's cycling outing. The "joke" was lost on Amanda and Fred, who looked at each other and shrugged.

On the way up the stairs, Fred whispered, "Guess we'll find out what that meant some other day."

"He's our son," Amanda said softly, "but as well as I can read him most of the time, he's going to keep us wondering about things the rest of our lives. I sometimes think he does it just to keep me on my toes and to taunt me. It's a game of sorts with him, but I refuse to let it bother me."

Back in the family room, Annie chastised Auggie for making the "captain" remark to his parents without explaining it. "I'm just playing with Mom a little," Auggie chuckled. "I'll tell her about it tomorrow. Now, let's catch the late news."

Auggie handed the remote to Annie and asked her to key in the channel for the local news and then go over the location of the buttons with him. After changing the channel, Annie sat on the sofa, snuggled up to Auggie and described the remote to him. "Congress should pass a law," Auggie said, "so that all remotes are designed alike."

The newscaster finished with local news. The weather was recapped, and the sportscaster finished her report before the highlights of national news were reported. "There is no comment tonight from CiA officials about the apparent intentional leak of information used as a basis for a series of articles in the _New York Times_. Unnamed sources quoted in the articles are making accusations about mismanagement in various departments in the agency that is leading to putting field officers in jeopardy."

Auggie stiffened as he listened to the report. He handed the remote back to Annie. "Rewind that last report. I want to listen to it again."

Annie took the remote, studied it a second and located the rewind key. They listened again. "We need to do a little work before we go to sleep tonight," Auggie said as he patted Annie's knee. Annie turned off the television and sound system. On their way to the staircase Auggie suggested they grab a couple of beers to sip on while they did some research to find the article …. or articles … in question.

While Annie changed into her silk nightshirt and washed her face, Auggie set up his laptop and portable braille keyboard and powered up the equipment. When Annie came out of the bathroom, he changed into his sleep pants. Before going into the bathroom, Auggie said, "She's booted up. Start searching for those articles, if you want."

Annie sat at Auggie's desk and started searching for the articles on the _Times_ web site. It took only a few keystrokes before she found the articles referenced in the news report. Auggie sauntered out of the bathroom wearing his sleep pants and a well-worn tee shirt. "Find anything?" he asked.

Annie glanced up before answering. She couldn't help doing a slight double take at the man standing across the room from her. "How the hell do you manage to do that?"

Furrowing his brow Auggie asked, "Do what?"

"Look like you're about to step on stage for a photo shoot."

"Oh, that. It's the lighting in this room. I had it designed to make only me look good," he answered, making a joke of Annie's observation.

"Joke all you want to, but you evidently have lost all perspective on how handsome a man you are."

Auggie laughed self-consciously, "You are buttering me up. What do you want, Walker?"

"Not buttering you up … don't worry … just letting you know how lucky I feel that you want to be with me."

Auggie approached the desk and found the corner with the back of his right hand. He draped his left arm over Annie's shoulders and leaned down pretending to be looking at the laptop screen. "See anything interesting, so far?"

"Just found the articles. Do you want me to start reading?" Annie asked.

"Sure. I know this isn't exactly a romantic way to spend an evening, but why don't we get comfortable in bed with the laptop and then you can read. It should be just a tad more romantic than the computer voice," Auggie said sarcastically and then chuckled. Annie unplugged the power cord from the laptop and stood up. She kissed Auggie before picking up the computer and placing it in the middle of the king size bed.

They each climbed into bed and leaned up against the pillows propped up against the headboard. Annie balanced the laptop on her knees and started reading.

Half way through the third article, Annie started to yawn. "I'm sorry, Auggie. This isn't boring, but we've had a busy day and I'm running out of gas."

"I know," he said sympathetically, "but keep going, if you can. By finishing tonight, we won't have to finish in the morning. I want us to have as much information as possible, just in case we get a call from Joan."

Annie finished the last article and let out a big yawn. Auggie rubbed her back at the shoulders and said, "Thanks for hanging in with me, Worker Bee. I wanted us to be able to talk intelligently with Joan if we get one of her famous sorry-to-bother-you-on-your-vacation phone calls tomorrow."

"I understand … sorry about the yawns," Annie said as she powered down the laptop. "The power icon indicates the battery has only about 25 percent left, so we'd better plug it in to recharge," she said as she handed the computer to Auggie. He took it and got up to put it back on the desk and reattached the power cord.

While he was out of bed, Annie rearranged and refluffed the pillows and snuggled under the down comforter. She'd never been to Glencoe in November and with the cool wind blowing, Annie was glad she had both Auggie and the new comforter to keep her warm. Annie turned off the bedside lamp before Auggie climbed back in bed. The two intelligence officers tried to push the CIA part of their lives aside and snuggled together. They held each other gently but still talked quietly about the leak that was creating the articles.

Who could the leak be? Why was he or she doing it? Would Joan be giving them a call about something?

The questions were asked between kisses. In mere moments, there were no more questions … just the sounds of passion between two people in love and the rustle of fabric. After making love they fell back on the bed and enjoyed each other's warmth.

Auggie reached over to Annie and placed his hand over hers and they interlaced their finger. Annie rolled over on her side and studied Auggie's profile in the low light that was emitted by the night light. She leaned over and kissed him on the lips. "Auggie?" she whispered.

"Ready for Round Two?" Auggie asked.

Annie swatted his shoulder. "Let me finish. I have a serious question."

"Mmmm," Auggie responded. "OK." He was expecting a question about the articles they'd read earlier.

"How can you play the piano so beautifully, if you haven't played in years?"

"I never said I haven't played in years," Auggie responded. "You're making assumptions."

"Oh, I am? Do you sneak out and play at a piano bar? Is that your new NOC?" Annie paused and giggled. "You know, that would be a great cover for you. Play the piano at a place where the so-called diplomats hang out. You'd be in a perfect place to just overhear intel."

Auggie laughed with Annie while they teased each other in the dark stillness of the late November evening. Then he fessed up … "I have a piano hidden away at the apartment."

"You do not," Annie said as she raised up on her elbow and looked down at Auggie's smiling face resting on the down pillow.

"You may have seen it and not even realized what it is."

"No. You're just teasing me," Annie said giving his shoulder a swat.

"Nope. I have an electronic keyboard that I pull out and play when I'm alone. But its legs fold up and I keep it in the storage closet. You've just never noticed."

"Auggie, that's lying by omission."

"Is not," Auggie said pulling Annie down to him and kissing her neck. Annie sighed, realizing she would never win this argument. "Now," Auggie whispered, "Let's get some sleep, cause Mama Amanda's going to work our butts off tomorrow."

"Aside from your aggravating her before we went shopping, she seemed fairly relaxed today," Annie giggled.

"Remember how she was last spring for the two days before the summer kick-off party?" Auggie reminded Annie. "Well, she had a paid staff for those preparations. Tomorrow we are the staff."

* * *

><p>The early morning wind whistled through the trees in the Anderson's backyard waking Annie, who wasn't used to November wind gusts in the Upper Midwest. Auggie, on the other hand, seemed soothed by the sounds of the wind and with each gust he slipped into a deeper more relaxed slumber. For a moment, Annie envied Auggie's deep sleep as she drifted back to sleep.<p>

At eight o'clock there was a gentle tap on the bedroom door. Auggie and Annie answered the knock in unison with a groggy "good morning."

Amanda cracked the door just enough to say, "Breakfast will be ready in about 20 minutes. We have a busy day today … ready?"

"We'll be down as soon as we shower, Mom," Auggie answered before he elbowed Annie and said, "I was right, wasn't I."

"Yes, Auggie. I give up. You are always right. You know everything about everybody, and when it's not driving me crazy, it's kind of comforting," Annie said as she shuffled to the bathroom. "Since I'm up, I'll go first. OK?"

While Annie showered, Auggie carefully selected a sweater from his dresser, pulled his favorite pair jeans out of the closet and laid the clothing on the bed that he'd already straightened. When Annie came out of the bathroom, Auggie was finishing smoothing the wrinkles out of the comforter.

"Are you sure this comforter isn't girly? The fabric feels really lush."

"What do you have against girly stuff, Anderson?" Annie asked as she dried her hair with a towel. "The new comforter is a dark green heavy-weight silk with tan piping. The bed skirt is the same fabric and it's box pleated, not gathered, so it's very tailored," Annie described the room's new furnishings.

Auggie sauntered toward the sound of Annie's voice and when he was close she reached over and touched his hand to let him know where she was standing. He gave her a good morning hug and kissed her. "You smell amazing this morning." He gave her another gentle kiss on the forehead and said, "If there's a miracle and I regain my sight and find out you and my mom conspired against me to sleep under flowers, you will both pay dearly."

Annie barely giggled.

* * *

><p>They'd better get a good night's sleep, because we all know Amanda can run a tight operation when she's planning a party. And there may be some unexpected developments along the way. Keep a watch for the next update. Thanks and ... later.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7 Holiday Preparations

During day before Thanksgiving preparations, Auggie receives a phone call that changes the guest list as well as some of his weekend plans. Who could it possibly be? Read on to find out who will be the extra guest at dinner and to see how Amanda gets ready for a family holicay party. Thank you so much for the encouraging comments and the alerts. I'm glad that you seem to be enjoying the story.

Guess I'm supposed to remind you that I have no association with Covert Affairs ... just a love for its stories and characters.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7 – Holiday Preparations<strong>

Amanda had made her amazing cinnamon rolls for breakfast along with a platter of breakfast meats and scrambled eggs. "Wow, Amanda," Annie said as she and Auggie walked into the breakfast room, "Breakfast looks wonderful. Fresh cinnamon rolls?"

"I made them yesterday and let them rise overnight. They're one of Auggie's favorites, so I try to make them as often as I can when he's home. The last couple of times you were here, Annie, I didn't have the extra time with the party and then the wedding," Amanda explained as she walked behind them and patted Auggie on the back.

"You get the Mother of the Year Award," Auggie said as he slid into his chair at the table and greeted his dad who had just rustled the morning paper he was reading to let Auggie know he was at the table.

Annie opened the fridge and pulled out the pitcher of orange juice to place on the table. She then took the coffee pot out of the coffeemaker to pour them some coffee and refresh Fred's cup. As the foursome ate breakfast, Amanda detailed what they needed to accomplish during the day. Auggie leaned toward Annie, "Eat up, because you're going to need all of your strength today," he teased.

Amanda looked up from her notes on the clipboard. "What's that, Auggie?"

"Nothing, Mom," Auggie said. "I was just telling Annie to eat all of her breakfast so she'd have plenty of energy today for your clipboard full of jobs."

Fred lowered his paper and looked across the table at Auggie and smiled before he made eye contact with Annie and smiled again. "Amanda, now they both have your number," he teased.

Auggie got up from the table to retrieve the coffee pot. He refreshed his own cup and asked Annie if she wanted more. Annie scooted her cup across the table to meet Auggie's fingers, and he refilled it. Standing with the pot, he smiled and asked, "Mom, Dad … either of you need a refill?"

Amanda said, "Thank you, but no. I drank a pot by myself before everyone came down."

Auggie laughed. "Everyone drink up. We're have to keep up with Mom today."

"I need a refill, Auggie, since you have the pot," Fred said. Auggie reached across the table to where his dad was sitting, and Fred, taking a cue from Annie, slid the cup to meet his son's fingers. Again, Auggie poured the coffee and pushed it back toward his father and took the pot back to the coffeemaker.

"Thank you, Son," Fred said in the most matter of fact tone he could muster.

"You're welcome, Dad."

Amanda and Fred smiled at each other and then at Annie.

Amanda picked up her clipboard. "OK, Fred, I need you and Auggie to get the tubs of Christmas ornaments off the shelves, dusted and ready to bring upstairs after dinner tomorrow. Clean dust rags are in the rag hamper in the garage."

"I'll make sure all the sections of the tree still light up," Fred added.

As they all worked to clean up the breakfast mess, Amanda told Annie that Cynthia planned to arrive about ten o'clock. "Do you mind peeling and slicing the apples for the pies before she comes?" Amanda asked.

Amanda pulled a huge bag of Jonathan apples from the pantry and laid it on the island. "How many pies are we making?" Annie asked wide-eyed.

"Probably four … more Andersons like apple pie over pumpkin, so I've been making four apple pies, two pumpkin and two pecan," Amanda explained as she pulled a bag of lemons out of the fruit drawer. She disappeared again into the pantry, climbed up on the step stool and retrieved the biggest stainless steel mixing bowl Annie had ever seen. Her eyes grew even wider.

"This bowl should be large enough," Amanda said as she sat it on the Island. "Slice a few apples and squeeze some lemon juice over them so they don't discolor. Don't worry about too much juice. There'll be plenty of sugar to sweeten up the fruit."

Auggie was leaning against the counter across the room sipping on a third cup of coffee while trying to suppress a grin. Amanda left the room mentioning she had another little job for Auggie.

Annie started tearing open the bag and putting apples in the colander to wash. She took a paring knife out of the knife block and started peeling an apple. Auggie finished his coffee and put the cup in dishwasher. Walking up behind Annie, he wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "Welcome to the Andersons … being allowed in Amanda's kitchen the day before a holiday meal is a great honor."

"I know, Auggie. And one of the reasons we wanted to come is to help. But, do you know how big that bowl is?"

"Yes. I know exactly which bowl she pulled out. I've had to peel enough potatoes to fill that sucker," he laughed. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go to the garage to get the rags to dust the storage boxes."

"Do you know where the hamper is?" Annie asked.

"I know where it has always been. I'll leave the door open, so you can hear me if it's been moved and I need help finding it." Annie realized after he'd left the kitchen that he didn't have his cane with him.

Amanda came back into the kitchen carrying a stack of about half a dozen CDs and several sheets of paper with Braille writing. "Where's Auggie?"

"Getting the dust cloths."

Auggie sauntered back into the kitchen carrying a handful of worn towels. "There you are," Amanda said. "When you finish helping your dad get the tree and ornaments organized, will you make me a Thanksgiving playlist for tomorrow?"

"Mmmm. Uh. Sure, Mom … I guess."

"Great. Here are the CDs," Amanda said thrusting the stack of jewel boxes into Auggie's right hand, "and here's my list of songs I want off of them," she said as she brushed the Braille notes against his left hand.

Auggie moved to the breakfast table to set down the CDs and laid down the Braille sheets. His fingers scanned the top sheet where he found the title of a CD and a list of the songs his mother wanted downloaded. "Mom, how did you do this?"

"Does it make sense? Can you read it ok?" she asked.

"It's perfect, but you didn't answer my question. How did you do this?" Auggie asked impatiently.

"Well, what good is having access to some money if you don't spend it on things you need and want," she said. "I did a little investigation and found some software for my computer that converts text to Grade Two Braille and prints it out on an embosser. I figured your Dad and I can both use it. There are times when it's necessary to send you things on paper. And, I'm telling you that slate and stylus can get tedious."

"I'm a little overwhelmed by the thought," Auggie said emotionally and then pulling himself together added, "but I'm not so sure about this jobs list thing you've got going on here."

Amanda laughed. "You grew up with a jobs list. You know you're used to it."

Auggie took the CDs and his mother's instructions upstairs to put on his desk. He also noticed that she'd labeled the CD boxes. His mother, the little dynamo who searched for specialists all over the world when he was first injured, finally was accepting what the doctors had consistently told them: The vision loss is permanent.

As his fingers worked their way across the Braille text, Auggie realized that his mother not only had accepted his vision loss, she had embraced it and decided she would do everything she could to integrate herself into his world. He kept reading … out of curiosity about his mother's selection of music. When he came to the end of the last page, he smiled when he read the last two sentences. "Thanks, Auggie. I love you."

He whispered aloud in the empty room, "Thanks, Mom. I love you, too."

* * *

><p>Before returning downstairs, Auggie picked up his cane, not knowing what he and his dad would encounter in the basement storage areas. When he went to get the dust cloths off the kitchen table, he could hear Annie peeling apples at the island and his mother working at the farther end of the island. "Did Dad go on downstairs?"<p>

"I think so." Looking up, she said, "Oh good, you brought your cane down with you. Be careful down there."

Walking down the stairs to the basement rooms and storage area, Auggie tried to visualize the area. He had not been in the lowest level of his childhood home since before the deployed to Iraq. Lots of details can go missing in someone's memory over four years, he thought. But he was armed with an handful of dust cloths, and he would conquer the storage area like he had everything else.

At the bottom of the steps, he stopped and called out for his dad who answered from the back of the area in the storage room where Christmas was stored. "Is the path fairly clear to the storage room," Auggie called.

"It's pretty clear. If you have your cane, you'll be OK," Fred answered.

Auggie made his way to the storage area. "Hey, Dad. Where do we begin?" he asked waving the dust cloths.

"Yeah, your mom is afraid an extra spec of dirt is going to find its way into the living room."

"Show me what boxes we need and I'll lift them off the shelves," Auggie said. Fred showed Auggie the location of the boxes. Auggie wiped each box down with a clean cloth. When he picked up the first box, he asked his Dad to show him where they needed to be stacked.

They worked through the morning downstairs to get organized for the after-dinner tree trimming party. In an effort to prevent Amanda from loading them up with additional chores, they stretched the job to last about twice as long as necessary. Working alongside his father and having time to visit casually with him, Auggie asked why his mother had invested in the new software and Braille embosser.

"Well, your mom wants to be able to send you letters that don't need to be read to you, and she doesn't trust the privacy of email." Fred chuckled, "And she gets frustrated with writing Braille manually … I think it's hard on her hands, too."

"I know you can afford it, but I feel kind of bad you spent a chunk of change on the Braille embosser."

"Auggie, for quite a while after you came home from Iraq, both your mother and I were in a state of denial. We thought there would be a change in the diagnosis and some doctor somewhere would find a way to restore your sight," Fred shared with Auggie.

"Dad, I wish you'd been right," Auggie said placing his hand on his dad's shoulder.

"You seemed to accept the finality of the situation almost immediately, and I tried to follow your lead. But it took your mother a long time to accept what happened to you. If she can't find a cure for you, she's going to be sure that we have everything we need to make your life easier and that you have everything you need in your personal life. We know the Agency has set up things for your office. Is there anything you need at home?" Fred concluded the explanation.

"I've got it covered, Dad." Auggie said. "Besides, there's my trust fund, if I need something that I can't cover on my salary."

"Auggie, we don't want you dipping into your trust fund too often. We want you to save that for retirement or something unexpected."

"Dad, right now there's nothing I need materially or … or …" he hesitated. "I guess I'm trying to say that life's pretty good right now."

Fred smiled, thinking he understood what his son was saying. He realized one of the important things (or people) that completed Auggie's life was upstairs in the kitchen peeling a mountain of apples. "If you help me get the Christmas tree pieces out of the storage carton, you can go work on your mom's music project and I'll test the lights," Fred said as he opened the carton.

* * *

><p>Auggie reappeared in the kitchen with the dirty cleaning cloths and interrupted the chatter between Annie, Amanda and Cynthia to ask where to stash them. "Just lay them on the washer. I'll have some others to add to a wash load later," Amanda called to him as he made his way down the hall to the laundry room.<p>

When he returned, Auggie listened at the door for a few seconds to figure out where the three cooks were working. Annie was still peeling and slicing apples, his mom was rolling out dough on the other side of the island and Cynthia was stirring something on the stove. He took a deep breath and determined she was making the broth for the beginning of the giblet gravy.

Auggie went to the main sink, washed his hands and on his way to the fridge for a bottle of water, deftly swiped a handful of apple slices from Annie's bowl. "Stop that," she said with a swat. "You're going to slow down my progress."

"Will not!" he said. "Besides, you have enough apples there for a small army."

"That's what we're feeding tomorrow," Amanda said. "How's my music coming?"

"Dad and I just finished downstairs. I'm going to work on your music right now," Auggie said as he left the room.

* * *

><p>Auggie began to copy Amanda's CDs onto his laptop and to create the playlist for her iTouch. Although he had all the latest technology at his fingertips, Auggie had to work slowly through the process. During the process, he realized his mother had not once since he arrived home raced to him to do anything for him or "rescue" him from something she though was dangerous. Amanda finally was able to focus on Auggie's capabilities rather than the things that were particularly difficult for him.<p>

Auggie was finishing up with the selections from the third CD when his phone vibrated on the desk. "Anderson," he answered.

"How's Glencoe treating you this trip," Joan asked.

"Great. How's Langley treating you today," Auggie retorted.

"We have a little situation going on here, that I may need your help with over the weekend or early next week."

Auggie groaned a little, thinking he didn't want to disappoint Amanda by leaving early.

"I know … you're on vacation, but this could be serious. Have you read any of the articles about the leak of information?" his boss asked.

"Annie and I read them last night … well … Annie read them and I listened," he chuckled.

"Good, so you know we have a rogue officer in the Midwest blabbing information to a journalist. There's also a tie-in to the theft of some of our technical research. We believe we know who the officer is, but we need confirmation. We need for you and Annie to do a little reconnaissance down in St. Louis on Sunday night and Monday. Do you think that's doable?"

"As long as it doesn't interfere with Mom's Thanksgiving dinner party and tree trimming party, we can manage it," Auggie said. "But, Joan, Annie and I are on vacation. We have my personal laptop and our encrypted cell phones. We're not set up for surveillance or reconnaissance. I have just what I need to create a playlist for Mom's background dinner music, and that's pushing it."

Joan laughed. "We're working on the technology you need. I'll fly out with it tomorrow."

"You are going to bring it in person?"

"That's not a problem is it?"

"No, but you're flying out on Thanksgiving. You'll miss the holiday with Arthur," Auggie said.

"Arthur understands," Joan reassured Auggie. "We'll have some quiet time over the weekend."

Shifting gears from friend to officer, Auggie asked, "What's the plan?"

"I need to bring you a couple of miniature surveillance microphones and the corresponding listening equipment. I want you and Annie to be in St. Louis on Sunday evening to slip into a dry cleaners and plant the microphones in the waistbands of two pair of trousers that our suspect dropped off on Friday. He more than likely will pick them up Monday morning or on his way home Monday evening," Joan explained.

"What time will you be in Chicago on Thursday," Auggie asked.

Picking up the print-out of her schedule, Joan said, "Looks like my plane lands about one thirty. Why?"

"We're having dinner about six, and everyone arrives between two and three to spend the afternoon. You can bring the equipment here and have dinner with us."

"That's very kind, Auggie, but I don't want to intrude on your family."

"Mom will have my hide if you don't stay. I've been in enough trouble for having missed some holidays. We have a few hours to come up with a cover story that will satisfy the family. Do you need for Annie to meet you at O'Hare? We have a rental car."

Joan thought before responding. "Why don't I take a cab to your home? That way we have more options for the cover story. Your mom and dad and one brother know you and Annie are with the Agency. Is that correct?"

"That's right. Aaron knows, but his wife Cynthia and everyone else thinks I work for the State Department and Annie works for the Smithsonian. You ride herd on the technology, and I'll go sort some things out with Annie and my mom."

Before hanging up, Joan asked, "Has it been a good visit, so far?"

"Yep. We're both pitching in to get ready for tomorrow. Annie's peeling apples for the pies," he said with amusement in his voice. "There are some days I really miss the vision thing."

"I know you do, Auggie." Joan said softly.

* * *

><p>In Chapter 8, Amanda makes plans to include her extra guest at dinner and helps Annie and Auggie protect everyone's cover story. We'll see how the boss lady blends in with the Anderson family. Thanks for reading!<p> 


	8. Chapter 8 Planning for an Extra Guest

In this installment, Auggie and Annie solicit Amanda's help to keep Joan's true identity under raps while preparations for an Anderson Thanksgiving continue. I need to remind you that this is an exercise in pure fun and it has no association with the Covert Affairs we all love on USA Network.

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoy this new chapter.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8 – Planning for an Extra Guest<strong>

Auggie hurried downstairs but slowed down when he entered the breakfast room. Annie looked up when she heard his sneakers squeek on the hardwood floor and said, "The apple thief is back. Let's protect the produce."

"Oh, har … you think you're so funny." Then he leaned casually against the refrigerator door and was quiet for a moment. "Annie, are you about at a stopping point?"

"Sure. Two more apples and I'm finished. Why?"

Auggie tilted his head toward the French doors leading to the patio. "We need to have a word."

Annie glanced at Amanda and as their eyes met, they each knew something must be happening back in Washington. Annie finished the apples and scooted them down to where Amanda was working. "I'll be back as soon as I can." Cynthia looked up from the fresh cranberry sauce she was making and smiled at Annie.

Annie washed and dried her hands and followed Auggie out to the patio. The early cold wind had calmed, the sun was out and the temperature was in the low 50s. "What's going on?" she asked as they sat at the outdoor table.

"Joan called. There's a problem with an officer in St. Louis. We need to be down there Sunday evening, and Joan is bringing us the technology and equipment we need tomorrow. She'll give us more details when she gets here. We need a cover story for why Joan is coming to our family Thanksgiving dinner."

Annie was speechless for a couple of minutes. "Joan's coming here? Never in my wildest imagination would I have come up with that one."

"Me neither," Auggie chuckled, "But we need to make this convincing. Any ideas?"

"Well, she could be my oldest sister, but that wouldn't explain why she's in Chicago with YOUR family. Could she be a friend of your mother's from one of her national boards passing through … maybe there's a mixup with her flight reservation and she has an unexpected layover scheduled for tomorrow."

Auggie liked the national board and friend idea. "Now we have to read in Mom," he said as he walked toward the door to the breakfast room. "I'm going to ask her to come upstairs to check something on her music list. You go on upstairs."

Walking back into the breakfast room, Annie put her hand on Auggie's back and said she needed to go upstairs. Auggie nodded. After he'd chatted with Cynthia for a few minutes and retrieved a can of soda out of the fridge, he asked his mother if she could come upstairs to check the progress on the playlist.

"I'm finishing the pies, I'll be up in a few minutes."

When Amanda walked into the bedroom, she knew she was there for more than a consultation on her play list. Annie was sitting on the bench at the end of the bed, and Auggie turned his desk chair and almost looked at her with an expectant expression on his face.

"This involves more than music, doesn't it?"

"We can't tell you everything, Mom. But something has come up, and Annie and I need some equipment for something we have to do Sunday night. Joan is going to fly out with it tomorrow. She needs to bring it here. It's either that or we meet her someplace near the airport and miss Thanksgiving dinner. How do you feel about inviting a friend who serves with you on one of your national boards join us for dinner because her flight plans get changed and she has an extra-long layover?"

Amanda smiled, "You trust me with a national security assignment?"

"Something like that." Auggie said quietly.

"Tell me what you want me to know and what I need to do, and we'll make it work."

Amanda listened as Auggie and Annie described how they envisioned the visit should play out.

"Now, just to add to the credibility of our story," Auggie said, "I'm going to have Joan call you in a few minutes so you can invite her to dinner tomorrow while Cynthia overhears the conversation. And since you do know Joan, this little operation won't be too big a stretch for you."

"Well," Amanda said as she left the room, "If Joan has to be away from home on a holiday, I'm happy to share our celebration with her. Besides, she'll get to meet the rest of your family."

After Amanda had left the room, Auggie let out a long breath, and whispered, "That's what frightens me most about this." He wasn't smiling.

Annie walked up behind Auggie, put her arms around him and reaching around to the right and kissed him on the cheek. "Every DPD officer's nightmare, huh? Having the family meet Joan. It will work out. It's going to be fun for me to work with her in the field again, even if the field your mom's dining room. She was amazing in Mexico City."

Auggie managed a devilish smile. "I just hope she doesn't break out any of her mad self-defense moves on one of my brothers if they say something she doesn't agree with."

"I need to get back to the kitchen," Annie whispered after giving Auggie another kiss. "I think my next assignment is preparing the vegetables for the … what did Cynthia call it? … crudité?"

"Fancy name for raw veggie snackies," Auggie said. "I'll finish the music downloads and then come down to terrorize the kitchen."

* * *

><p>About an hour after Auggie heard the phone ring with what he assumed was Joan's call to Amanda, he finished the music download and synced his mother's custom playlist to her iTouch. He gathered the CDs along with the iTouch to take downstairs. Walking down the hall he smiled as he eavesdropped on the conversation coming from the kitchen. Amanda was explaining her to Cynthia and Annie they would have one more quest at Thanksgiving dinner.<p>

Auggie ambled into the kitchen unloading what he was holding onto the breakfast table. "Hey, guys, I'm getting hungry. If you'll point me in the direction of the deli meats, I'll make us some sandwiches."

Amanda considered stopping what she was doing to make the sandwiches, but didn't want to get one of Auggie's "I'm fully capable" lectures. "I have packages of ham and roast beef in the meat drawer. They're both in the front of the drawer. The mayo jar is in the second shelf on the door, and the iceberg lettuce is in the vegetable drawer. The bread's where it always is in the bread keeper on the counter."

Auggie smiled and nodded. "I'll work on the table, if that's OK. Does everyone want a sandwich? Beef or ham?"

The consensus was ham sandwiches. Auggie gathered his supplies and lunch plates from the cupboard and began making the sandwiches. Amanda and Cynthia watched in fascination as he worked, but Annie paid little attention except to direct him to the mayo jar in the fridge door. After all, he'd been making lunch for her for the past year.

Auggie finished making the sandwiches and Annie pulled a bag of chips out of the pantry to add to the lunch plates. Annie set the plates in front of the chairs at the table while Auggie went to tell his dad lunch was ready. When the men reappeared in the kitchen, Cynthia was pouring ice tea and Amanda was distributing the napkins.

During lunch, they discussed what needed to be accomplished during the afternoon and what would be finished Thursday morning. The family and friends would start arriving about three in the afternoon to spend time together before dinner was served in the early evening. Cynthia poured herself a second glass of tea, and as she was stirring in the sweetener she asked Amanda, "Who is this friend you invited to Thanksgiving dinner?"

Annie kept her expression neutral and took another bite of her sandwich. She noticed Auggie's expression showed the barest hint of amusement upon realizing his mother was helping them run an op. Amanda cleared her throat and explained, "We serve on a board together in Washington. Her holiday flight plans were changed unexpectedly, and she's going to be stuck in Chicago tomorrow evening. I decided she shouldn't spend Thanksgiving afternoon and evening at the airport," Amanda said convincingly.

The smile Auggie had been suppressing finally spread across his face. "You don't think the Anderson family might be too much for one of your society lady friends?" Auggie asked.

"She'll probably find us entertaining," Amanda answered.

"Uh, huh," Auggie said softly as he stood up and reached for Annie's empty plate. Annie pulled the remaining plates across the table and added them to the stack, which Auggie took to the sink. Everyone kept their tea to sip on while they worked on their various projects and assignments. Cynthia excused herself to call Aaron. When she was out of earshot, Amanda asked Auggie, "Was that OK? Was I convincing?"

"You did great, Mom. All you have to do is be yourself. Annie and I will take care of Joan," Auggie reassured his mother by putting his arm around her.

"I'm flattered you two have confidence in me," she answered. "And by the way, thanks for taking over lunch duties this afternoon."

Auggie smiled and nodded, "You're welcome. Now, I'm getting out of your way to make some phone calls."

"Auggie, I think you're teasing … but never, ever feel you're in the way anyplace in this house."

* * *

><p>Thanksgiving morning Auggie awakened early and after quietly checking his watch tried to go back to sleep. If he got up at quarter to five, Annie would surely wake up, too; and he knew she'd appreciate at least another hour of sleep. So, he dozed lightly about another hour. Annie started waking up about six. She stretched, rolled over and giggled at the sight of Auggie smiling at her. "How long have you been awake?"<p>

"Not long," Auggie answered. "I was enjoying listening to you sleep … next best thing to watching you sleep."

"I hope I wasn't snoring," she said, snuggling deeper under the comforter.

"No snoring. Just some contented little sleeping sounds," Auggie said as he reached over and pulled her closer to him.

Annie sighed in contentment, "Can we just stay here till dinner time?"

"I don't think so," Auggie teased. "I want to do something for Mom and Dad, and I need your help."

"What have you got up your sleeve?"

"I want to cook breakfast for them, but I need you to be my eyes in Mom's kitchen. She doesn't have Braille markers on the stove, and I know the contents of the refrigerator are a nightmare with everything you, Cynthia and Mom did yesterday preparing for today."

"I'd love to help make breakfast," Annie whispered as she rolled out from under the warm comforter into the cool room.

"Mom always gets up super early on Thanksgiving, so let's shower later," Auggie suggested.

"OK. Give me a minute to wash my face and brush my hair."

They both freshened up and pulled on jeans and sweatshirts before making their way downstairs in the quiet home. Annie surveyed the kitchen and said, "First, we have to get the coffee going."

Auggie opened the cabinet under the island and found the stack of mixing bowls. He pulled out the bowl just larger that the medium size one. Annie started the coffee and turned around to find Auggie exploring the cooktop and feeling the counter beside the cooktop. "Are you checking things out or looking for something specific?" Annie asked through a yawn.

"Mom's always had a copper thing that she stores her cooking tools in. Did I miss it, or is it not here?"

Annie chuckled lightly, "Your fingers must have missed it by millimeters. Find the left front corner of the cooktop and go all the way back to the back splash and then go to your left a little. It's there and filled with every tool imaginable. What do you want?"

Locating the tools Auggie answered, "A whisk or any kind of wire stirring thing for the eggs."

"I bet you're going to find one in there. What do you want out of the fridge? Eggs? Butter?" she asked as she began pulling the food off the shelves.

Auggie answered, "Yeah, and bacon and some cheese to sprinkle over the eggs."

Annie surveyed the ingredients that were laid on the counter. "Do you want me to do the bacon in the microwave?" she asked.

"Sounds good. Do you know where Mom stored the left over cinnamon rolls? We can warm those in the oven," Auggie said as he started breaking eggs into the bowl.

The coffee had finished brewing, and Annie placed a cup on the counter for Auggie to the left of the mixing bowl. "Coffee at your nine o'clock," she said as she leaned against the counter to Auggie's left and sipped from her cup. "Well, it looks like we have breakfast under control, so all we need now is for your parents to come down."

Auggie located his cup and cradled it in his hands as he sipped. They talked quietly about their impeding assignment from Joan and both had to chuckle about Joan coming for dinner later in the day. When Annie poured their second cups of coffee, they heard their parents moving around upstairs. Auggie tilted his head up and listened a few seconds before saying, "That's our cue to start cooking."

Annie layered the bacon on paper towels and shoved the plate in the microwave. She put the leftover cinnamon rolls on a cookie sheet to warm in the oven, and Auggie started whisking the eggs and melting the butter in the large skillet. In a few minutes, Amanda shuffled into the kitchen wearing yoga pants and a faded Northwestern sweatshirt. She stopped short when she saw Auggie at the cooktop melting butter in a skillet.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"You get three guesses," Auggie teased, "And the first two don't count. What do you think it looks like? Did you forget to put in your contact lenses this morning?"

"Auggie …." Amanda exclaimed in a tone of fake exasperation. Annie handed Amanda a cup of coffee.

"Mom, you take a seat and relax a few minutes with your coffee. It's my turn to cook breakfast for you … well, it's our turn," Auggie said.

"I just did what I was told. Auggie's in charge," Annie laughed as she started the microwave to finish cooking the bacon.

The chunk of butter in the skillet had melted and Auggie could hear it begin to sizzle. He gave the bowl of eggs another quick whisk before slowly pouring them into the skillet. While the eggs started cooking, he walked across the kitchen to the cupboard that housed the plates and took out four plates. He thought through everything that needed to be done. Annie recognized his thinking, calculating expression and sidled up to his right side lightly leaning against him.

"What do you need me to do now?" Annie whispered.

Auggie smiled as he scraped the cooked eggs from the bottom of the skillet with the spatula. "Set the table with silverware and napkins, and pour the juice," he whispered.

Fred walked into the breakfast room and was surprised to see his wife relaxing with her coffee while reviewing the list of tasks that needed to be accomplished by the time the family would start to arrive about three o'clock in the afternoon. "You taking a vacation this morning?" he teased as he patted her back on the way to the coffee pot.

Fred stopped for a few seconds to observe the scene in the kitchen with Auggie working at the cooktop and Annie checking on the bacon in the microwave. He smiled, enjoying the way his son and future daughter-in-law (he hoped) worked together. He greeted them with a "good morning."

"Sit down and relax, Dad. Breakfast is almost ready. Does everyone want a little cheese sprinkled on their eggs?" Auggie said nonchalantly.

Annie reported the bacon was cooked and the rolls were warmed. "Great," Auggie said. "Annie?"

Annie walked across the kitchen and put her hand on his back as she looked into the skillet. "Eggs look perfect," she reported.

"Now, will you put them on the plates? I don't want to risk spilling the perfect eggs," he whispered with a smile.

Annie plated the eggs, and Auggie sprinkled the cheese while Annie pulled out the bacon and rolls to add to the plates. She nudged Auggie to let him know the plates were ready to take to the table. He picked up two plates, took them to the table and set them in front of his parents. Annie followed with their plates and then returned to the kitchen for the coffee pot. She topped off everyone's coffee before making a fresh pot.

Amanda took a few bites of her breakfast. "Auggie, thank you for breakfast."

"You're welcome, Mom. You know I did it for two reasons. The first is to give you just a little break before you get started on the big meal. The second is to reassure you that I'm not subsisting on restaurant and fast food at home."

Amanda chuckled a little. "I get the message, Auggie. But you must understand it's a mother's mission to always worry about her children. There are just some circumstances that give me cause to worry a little more about you. It's my mother's prerogative."

"I understand … don't always like it … but I understand," he said giving her a toast with his orange juice.

Amanda studied the notes on her clipboard and got up to turn on the larger of her double ovens. "Fred, Auggie, would you bring in the turkey I have brining in the refrigerator out in the garage? It's going to be heavy … it's in my commercial pot and I poured in the brining solution after I'd put it in the refrigerator."

The two men went to retrieve the turkey, and Fred was glad he had his son to help when he had trouble lifting the pot out of the fridge. "Auggie, can you lift this pot?"

"Let's see if my hour a day in the gym is paying off? Where is it?"

"Center shelf. The pot has sturdy handles."

Auggie reached into the fridge and lifted the filled pot out. "You're right. This is heavy, but it's not too bad. Do you have the door to the house open?" he asked as he started carrying the pot.

"It's open. What can I do to help?"

"Make sure the door into the kitchen is open and we're good."

Fred stepped up into the laundry room to check and reported, "All the doors are open. You have a clear path to the kitchen."

Auggie nodded and as he walked he allowed his left elbow to occasionally touch the wall. When walked into the breakfast room, Auggie called to his mom and Annie, "Is the counter clear by the big sink?"

"All clear," Annie answered from the table where she was stacking dirty dishes.

He set down the pot and asked if there was anything else he could help with. Amanda laughed and told him that Thanksgiving Day kitchen rules were now in effect and the men had to stay out of the kitchen unless they were invited in. "Great," Auggie replied. "I'm going to shower and check email."

Amanda prepared the turkey for the oven, and Annie mixed the fillings for the pumpkin and pecan pies. When the turkey was safely in the oven, Amanda made and rolled out the pie crust for the pies and explained the finer points of flaky crust to Annie.

When the pumpkin pies were baking, Annie excused herself to shower.

Annie opened the door to the bedroom and found Auggie at the computer reading and responding to his emails. "Have there been any changes to Joan's plans?" she asked.

"Nope. The weather in D.C. and here is pretty good today, so she ought to be here close to on time. This is going to be an interesting afternoon and evening," Auggie mused.

Closing the door to the bathroom, Annie said, "It sure will be."

By the time Annie returned to the kitchen, Cynthia had arrived and begun crumbling the dried bread for the dressing. "Mornin' Cynthia," Annie said as she bounced into the kitchen. Cynthia smiled at her and asked if she would peel the sweet potatoes they had baked yesterday and mash them for the casserole. Cynthia and Annie had developed a close friendship, and chatted quietly as they worked. They shared stories about the personality quirks of their significant others.

With Cynthia having the kitchen duties under control, Annie helped Amanda set the table. Since there would be so much food on table to pass, Amanda decided to put the fall table arrangement on the buffet. She did place a line of pillar candles down the center of the table to light before the family entered the large dining room. Now that the ovens were filled with baking food, space was freed up in the refrigerator, so Annie could assemble two vegetable trays with dips and a tray with an assortment of cheeses and crackers for the family to nibble on before dinner was served.

Annie took a bottle of flavored water out of the fridge, and taking a gulp asked, "What else can I do?" While Cynthia was thinking, Amanda walked through and asked her to bring in two cartons of vanilla ice cream from the freezer in the garage. With that task accomplished, Annie excused herself to get dressed for the afternoon. When she returned to the bedroom, Auggie was still working at his desk, but he was wearing dress slacks, a white shirt and tie with a charcoal cashmere V-neck sweater.

"Hey, Handsome," Annie said as she approached him.

Auggie turned his head in her direction, smiled and said in a mocking tone, "You talkin' to me?"

"Just who do think I'd be talking to," Annie asked with a giggle in her voice. She leaned over to kiss him. She steadied herself by placing her hands on his shoulder. After the kiss, she leaned her forehead against his and said, "Officer Anderson, you clean up remarkably well."

"Yes, I do. Don't I?" he teased. Annie gave him one more soft kiss before she showered, put on a touch of makeup, and dressed in slacks and a silk and cashmere tunic sweater that Auggie had helped her pick out on a recent shopping trip.

They had been running errands in Georgetown when Annie noticed a "Sale" sign in the window of one of her favorite shops. Before Auggie had realized what was happening, Annie whipped into a parking space and he was being pulled out of the car. Auggie found the sweater before Annie when his fingers touched it as he was following Annie through the racks. He was drawn to its soft, luxurious feel; and it was available in Annie's size and in the shade of blue that she liked. She fell in love with it when she tried it on; but since it wasn't on sale or dressy enough for work, she decided to put it back. Auggie intervened and bought it for her.

Annie stood in front of the dresser to brush her hair and put on her earrings and long strand of chocolate pearls. Auggie walked to the corner of the dresser to retrieve his folded cane and he paused, waiting for Annie to finish. Annie looped the pearls over her head and looked in the mirror to straighten the necklace. When she saw their reflection in the mirror, she gasped just a little.

"Something wrong?" Auggie asked.

"No," she said a little flustered.

"What then?"

"It's nothing, Auggie." She said in an embarrassed tone.

"There is something. Spill. You can't gasp and not explain to me what is happening."

"It's just … Auggie, I'm embarrassed. I looked in the mirror, saw our reflections and realized that we really do make a nice looking couple."

Auggie smiled his most devilish smile and said, "I had no doubt. Now, we'd better go downstairs. I need to get Mom's background music up and running."

Auggie draped his left arm around Annie's shoulders and kissed her temple. "It's time to do the Anderson Thanksgiving." Annie nodded into his shoulder. "Thanksgiving is not nearly as scary as one of Mom's big parties or an Anderson wedding," Auggie whispered as they started walking toward the staircase.

* * *

><p>Check back soon for the next chapter to find out what happens during the pre-dinner party and what happens when Joan shows up for the party. Again, thanks for spending some time reading my story. Hope you continue to enjoy it.<p> 


	9. Chapter 9 Happy Thanksgiving

Joan becomes a guest at the Anderson Thanksgiving party so she can deliver equipment to Auggie and Annie. What fun! Joan's out in the field at Auggie's home. Let's see how well she fits in.

I have no association with Covert Affairs and merely amuse myself with these stories

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9 – Happy Thanksgiving<strong>

A little after two o'clock, the family started to arrive for football and snacks and an afternoon of catching up with each other before the big dinner was being served about six.

The first couple to arrive was Fred Jr. and his family. Auggie and Annie were still upstairs when the front door swung open and they heard the squeals of Freddie and Mandy running toward their grandmother mixed with Sarah's fake southern accent. Annie giggled and Auggie squeezed her shoulder. "Remember, Mom wants us to play nice."

"Keep that in mind when your doctor brother comes at you with six new reasons to take part in one of his friend's research projects," Annie shot back as they descended the stairs.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs and turned toward the back of the house, Annie warned Auggie, "Brace yourself," as nine-year-old Freddie and almost seven-year-old Mandy rushed toward them yelling, "Uncle Auggie!"

Auggie knelt down and put out his arms to greet the children who hugged him enthusiastically.

Mandy hugged his neck tightly, kissed his cheek and said, "I'm so glad you came home, Uncle Auggie. You're my favorite Uncle."

"Well, Mandy, you are one of my favorite people, too," Auggie said as he patted her back.

Freddie half hugged his uncle and trying to be grown up said, "Happy Thanksgiving, Uncle Auggie."

As Auggie stood up, Freddie slipped his small hand into Auggie's and asked, "Do you want to go to the family room where Mom and Dad are?" Auggie was touched by Freddie's offer of assistance. After taking a few steps, Auggie placed his hand on Freddy's shoulder. "You must have grown two inches since August," Auggie observed.

Freddy stopped to look back and up at his Uncle. "How did you know that? Mom says I've grown an inch and three quarters. It'll be two inches by Christmas," Freddy said.

"Well I don't have to be able to see to know your shoulder is higher off the ground today that it was the last time we were together," Auggie explained.

"Oh," Freddy said.

When they walked into the family room, Auggie was greeted warmly by Freddy's parents. They chatted a few minutes before Auggie excused himself to plug Amanda's iTouch into the audio system to start the music. He went to the living room, opened the cabinet doors that housed the audio equipment and with his sensitive fingers tried to locate the slot to dock the iTouch. He had plugged it in earlier in the day, but for some reason was having trouble this afternoon. He realized his hands were a little shaky. "Damn," he whispered to himself. He took a deep breath to calm himself and hooked up the audio equipment.

Annie had stepped into the doorway to ask Auggie a question, but she'd kept quiet when she sensed Auggie was struggling a little. As he turned up the music to a pleasant background level, Annie asked, "Is everything going OK?"

"Yep … everything's OK, now. I guess I'm a tad more nervous about today than I realized."

"I have a question," she whispered. "We didn't talk about it, but how are we going to have a private conversation with Joan?"

Auggie smiled. His family had an unnerving effect on him, but he was actually looking forward to having his boss join them for dinner. "Joan is going to bring a netbook computer with her, and when she has 'trouble' with her internet connection, we'll go upstairs to Dad's office to sort it out. That's when she'll give us the equipment and go over mission details with us."

The doorbell rang, and Auggie questioned who it could be, since the family let themselves in. "Oh," Annie said, "Your mom said she'd hired a couple of the wait staff from the club to help serve this evening. They're college students who weren't able to go home for Thanksgiving. I think she's paying them a lot more than they make at the club, so they'll have enough money to go home for Christmas."

"That sounds like Mom," Auggie chuckled.

They heard Amanda answer the door and greet the college students who had dressed in black slacks and white tuxedo shirts with rust cummerbunds. "Elizabeth! Sandy! Thank you so much for helping me out today," she greeted the young women.

"We're glad we can help," Elizabeth said, "Especially since the club was closed yesterday and today."

The young women followed Amanda through the dining room and into the kitchen as she explained what she needed for them to do. Since they were going to be having a family-style dinner and passing the dishes, they would have to be sure all the bowls were kept full and keep water, tea and coffee filled for the guests. She also told them that they would need to cut the pies while the family ate dinner and serve the desserts.

"Right now, you can relax a little. When the family arrives, we'll pop a couple of trays of hot hors d'oeuvres into the oven for you to pass around. When my sons start to relax, they all enjoy a few drinks; and I don't want them drunk before dinner," Amanda said with a smile.

Annie and Auggie walked down the hall back to the family room to rejoin his dad, brother Fred, and Sarah. He had his arm around Annie and she was leaning into him affectionately. Before they stepped into the family room, Annie turned toward Amanda to say, "We're just going to hang out for a few minutes. Let me know if there's anything I need to do to help."

Amanda smiled. "Thanks, Annie. I think I have it under control, and Cynthia will be back down in a few minutes." Annie nodded and continued walking. Amanda turned to Elizabeth and Sandy. "That was my youngest son, Auggie, and his friend, Annie. They're home from Washington," she said softly. Then she turned her back to the family room and whispered, "Auggie is blind. So, when you're walking around with trays of snacks, you'll need to tell him who you are and what you have on the tray. If Annie is close by, she'll know what to do."

The young women looked at each other nervously.

"I may have given you too much information, but I didn't want you to think Auggie was being aloof when he ignored you," Amanda explained.

Sandy said, "I think I'll just be sure his girlfriend is with him when I offer him something."

Cynthia reappeared in the kitchen dressed in fresh civilian clothes having changed out of her chef's jacket, pants and croc shoes. She introduced herself to the new helpers, and Amanda reminded her Annie said she was on call for help if she were needed.

By four o'clock the entire family had arrived along with Amanda's older sister, Barbara and her husband, Dennis. When all the family guests were in the house, Amanda called everyone together in the family room to announce that another guest would be arriving shortly. She explained how her friend, Joan, was stuck in Chicago until late in the evening because of a plane reservation mixup; and she invited her to join the family for dinner.

"I want everyone to welcome Joan and include her in our Thanksgiving celebration."

* * *

><p>Auggie and his brother, T.R., made themselves comfortable in the leather side chairs in the northwest corner of the family room. They were discussing the Cubs season, its disappointment and what surprises the fans might see when the new season starts. T.R. laughed much easier that he had in the past and there was a happier tone to his voice.<p>

"T.R., you sound so much happier than you did last summer," Auggie said as he reached over and slapped his brother's knee playfully. "I was kinda worried about you last summer."

"Yeah, man, I'm feeling a lot better about life. Holly and I went to a counselor last summer and I realized my happiness is my responsibility," T.R. said just above a whisper. "I figured I'd better get my act together so I wouldn't drive Holly and Leigh Ann away."

Taking a draining swig of his beer bottle, Auggie said, "You made a wise choice, T.R., because Holly's a wonderful young woman, and Leigh Ann deserves a Daddy with a good attitude."

"There's Daddy," Leigh Ann squealed as she ran to T.R. and leaned against his legs. Auggie set his beer bottle on the side table and faced the general area where he heard Leigh Ann. He leaned over, opened his arms and said, "How about a hug for your ol' Uncle Auggie?"

Leigh studied him warily for a few seconds before she threw her arms around his neck, hugged him and climbed into his lap. Annie was visiting with Sarah and Holly when she glanced across the room and watched while Auggie talked to little Leigh Ann. He must have known what questions to ask, because she was talking a blue streak and gesturing. When Annie walked up to them, she heard Leigh Ann say, "And it was this big," as she held out her arms to indicate how big whatever it was.

Auggie laughed softly and reminded her, "Remember, Leigh Ann, my eyes don't work so I can't see when you show me with your hands how big something is."

"Oh," she said sadly with a frown.

"But, I tell you what. You hold out your hands to show me how big it was and I'll put my hands on your hands so I can see with my fingers how big it was."

"OK," she said as she held out her arms again. Auggie put his hands on her shoulders and followed her little arms up to her hands. He laughed again and said, "Boy, that is big."

Annie knelt beside Auggie, smiled at Leigh Ann and asked, "What was so big?"

"The pumpkin at school. It was the biggest pumpkin I've ever seen," she said with exasperation thinking Annie should know what she was talking about. Leigh Ann decided her visit with Uncle Auggie was over and she squirmed down to run off to find Mandy.

"She's got you right where she wants you, Uncle Auggie," Annie teased. Auggie didn't disagree. He hated to admit it, but he likes kids and he truly loves his nephew and nieces. Annie said, "I took the liberty of fixing you a saucer of hot hors d'oeurves and veggies. Do you want it?" Auggie smiled and held out his hand to accept the snack.

"Save some for me … I'm going to get a beer … you ready for another?"

Annie returned with their beers and sat on the arm of the chair while she munched off of Auggie's plate and joined in the chat with T.R.

A little after four thirty, the doorbell rang. Annie squeezed Auggie's shoulder, and Auggie gave her knee a little squeeze. Amanda answered the door. She and Joan seemed genuinely happy to see each other and they hugged the way old friends would. "Amanda, thank you so much for your invitation to join you for dinner this evening."

"The whole family is here. Let me take your coat, and we'll go meet everyone," Amanda said. Joan smiled warmly, relishing the opportunity to observe Auggie's family. Amanda hung Joan's cashmere coat in the closet and Joan set the tapestry tote bag she was carrying on the closet floor under the dark coat.

Joan smoothed her burgundy-colored wool and silk brocade blazer that she was wearing over silky dress slacks and a cream silk shirt with a shawl collar and deep v neck. She was wearing diamond earrings and a pendent necklace of a three carat citrine surrounded by small diamonds. Her blonde hair fell soft and straight on her shoulders and she was wearing subtle, soft makeup. The two women smiled at each other. Joan asked in a whisper, "Ready for this?"

Amanda giggled. "The question is: Are YOU ready? You're the one having dinner with my family. Come meet everyone."

Joan followed Amanda down the hall to the family room. Auggie was still visiting with T.R., but he recognized familiar footsteps coming toward the family room and had to bite his lower lip to keep from breaking into a smile. When the two women walked into the room, a couple of the family members noticed and turned to smile. To Annie's surprise, Amanda caught everyone's attention with a shrill whistle.

"Now that I have your attention, I want to introduce my friend Joan Campbell. That's my husband, Fred, taking care of the bartender duties. And, I'm going to let my sons and their wives introduce themselves." Amanda turned to Joan, "Make yourself at home, Joan. Dinner will be ready about six o'clock."

"Would you like something to drink, Mrs. Campbell?" Aaron asked as he introduced himself as the fourth son in the Anderson clan of five. He then explained that his wife, Cynthia, was a chef by profession and was helping in the kitchen. "You'll meet her later."

Joan asked for a Scotch on the rocks and Aaron went behind the bar to pour it while Fred approached to introduce himself properly. After Joan had met the brothers, their wives and children, Auggie and Annie approached Joan and shyly introduced themselves. They chatted a few moments before Annie excused herself to get another beer for Auggie and herself. She was glad that they'd had so many cocktail party practice sessions when she was at the farm. Annie could not suppress a smile as she walked back to where Joan and Auggie were making small talk, because it was like watching a master class at Actors' Studio. "They could teach Hollywood a thing or two," she thought to herself.

Annie walked up to Auggie and Joan holding the two beer bottles wrapped in napkins. "Ready for another?" she asked Auggie as cue to reach for the bottle as she handed it to him. She and Joan gave each other sidelong glances and smiled slightly.

"I need to check my email," Joan said. "Do you have a wi fi connection I can log into?"

"We sure do," Auggie answered. "And I believe that you can get the best connection on this level of the house in the living room. It's just under my dad's office where we set up a modem and the router."

Annie smiled at Joan and said, "Auggie's an expert in computers, he keeps everyone's computers and electronics working the way they should."

Joan raised her eyebrows in mock disbelief. "You better believe it, Mrs. Campbell. Last summer the computer wizards at Northwestern where I teach couldn't find a problem with my office computer, and Auggie came over to my office while he was home for my wedding and solved the problem in less than an hour," Aaron proudly explained and gave Auggie a brotherly pat on the shoulder.

"Let me show you the best place in the living room to get a connection," Auggie said to Joan as he started walking out of the room. Joan followed him saying, "I need to get my netbook out of the coat closet."

Auggie waited for Joan at the entrance to the expansive living room. When she rejoined him, he motioned to his favorite chair in the front corner of the room and said "The wing chair in the corner is a perfect place to relax and check your email. And I believe the password is "captain," all lower case … unless Dad changed it."

"Thank you, Auggie," Joan said. Since no one was in the room or the adjoining foyer, she reached over and squeezed his forearm. Auggie smiled and left the room. Joan really did need to check her email, but she wouldn't be using the Anderson's wi fi, because her little nondescript netbook was, in fact, a piece of CIA secure encrypted equipment.

After a reasonable amount of time, Joan re-entered the family room carrying the small computer. Dodging the children running through the room and around their parents, Joan made her way to Auggie. "Your brother tells me you're some kind of computer wizard, Auggie. I'm having trouble connecting to the wi fi. I don't know if it's the wi fi or my computer."

Auggie grinned and said, "Mrs. Campbell, I believe you found the right person to help you. Let me take a look … but first, I'm going to need someone to be my eyes. Annie?"

Annie was a couple of steps away listening to Auggie's sister-in-law, Burma, describe the funny problems she encountered at a wedding last weekend. She turned toward Auggie when she heard her name. "What, Auggie?"

Seeing Annie and Auggie out of the DPD gave Joan a fresh perspective on the young couple. She'd thought part of the way they orbited each other was the office environment. But even in a relaxed family setting, she recognized how Auggie always kept track of Annie's movements and Annie, although she was doing other things and was with other people, always was aware of Auggie's movements, too.

Annie walked up to Auggie, snuggled up to him and looking up to him asked, "Need something?"

"I need to check Joan's computer, but since it's not hooked up to my Braille reader and software, I need you to be my eyes. We've worked together on these kinds of situations I think it will go quicker if you help me," Auggie explained.

Freddie heard Auggie's explanation. "I can help Uncle Auggie. I can be your eyes. I've helped you with computer stuff before," he said excitedly.

"I appreciate the offer, Buddy, but this might get complicated. You can help me next time," Auggie said as he reached out ruffled through Freddie's dark curly hair.

Auggie led the way upstairs to his dad's office. Joan opened the coat closet to retrieve her tote bag and followed him up the stairs with Annie. When they settled in the office, Joan started pulling equipment out of the tote. "That was so cute that your nephew wanted to help you, Auggie."

"He could have, too," Auggie chuckled. I've spent quite a bit of time with him sitting on my lap or beside me at the computer teaching him things. He's a really bright kid."

"Well just as long as he doesn't get into any national secrets," Joan teased.

"Nope," Auggie said, "Just basic programming and codebreaking."

Joan laid out the equipment across Fred's desk. It included tiny microphones to be sewn into the suspect's clothing, a couple of receivers for listening and tracking the suspect and what looked like a web camera. Joan explained that the tiny microphones would double as tracking devices and it was important to sew one into each piece of clothing the suspect had taken to the cleaner.

"How small are they?" Auggie asked holding out his hand. Joan picked up the microphone, no larger than a sew-in snap, into Auggie's left palm. He carefully felt it with the tips of his right hand fingers.

"Reva and her team did a good job on these," Auggie said. "I can barely feel them."

"They did a very good job," Joan agreed. "Now, just in case there's a hiccup with the equipment, there are two receivers."

Annie frowned at the equipment in front of her. "What's the camera for?"

"That will become Auggie's eyes to keep a lookout for you when you're in the cleaners planting the microphones," Joan explained. Auggie's face broke out into a beaming smile.

Joan shook her head. "Nothing brightens up your day, Auggie, like the prospect of getting out in the field. Do you know how transparent you can be?"

"Sorry, Boss," he chuckled. He held out his hand again indicating he wanted to explore the camera. Annie picked it up and handed it to him.

Joan explained that it looked like a run-of-the mill web cam, but it was equipped with night vision so that Auggie while sitting in the car when Annie slipped into the cleaners would be able to transmit the scene back to the tech ops center at Langley. Members of his team would monitor the scene and describe it to Auggie. In case it looked like someone might be entering the business, he could relay the information to Annie.

"Do you want to make sure the web cam works with your computer?" Joan asked Auggie. "If we find a problem, we still have time to get something express shipped to you."

Auggie turned the camera over in his hands several times. "Good idea," he said. "Come with me." Joan and Annie followed Auggie down the hall to their room.

Walking into the darkened room, Auggie remembered to flip the light on. He moved easily to his desk, set the camera down and connected its cable to the computer and turned on the power. While the trio waited for the computer to boot, Joan looked admired the room and said, "No wonder you two enjoy visiting here. This is a lovely room."

"Thanks," Auggie said. "Mom's in charge of the decorating these days, but this has been my room almost all my life. My brothers shared the dorm style room upstairs as they got older. I was the youngest and never moved up there."

The computer chimed indicating it was on and in service. Auggie sat down, pulled on his earphones and started typing. In just a few key strokes, an image of the room appeared on the screen. Annie picked up the camera and rotated it to see the rest of the room. "I'll turn off the lights," Joan said, "to be sure the night vision is working."

"That's amazing," Annie said. "The image is so clear."

"That's the idea behind night vision," Auggie said with a smirk.

Annie slapped playfully at his shoulder. "I know that, silly, but the image with this camera is so clear and bright. The S and T crew did a great job. You should see it."

The second the last sentence escaped her lips, she regretted saying it and gasped a little. Auggie reached around her waist and gave her a gentle squeeze to tell her everything was OK. They called the tech ops center back at Langley and verified that the video feed was working. Tomorrow they would make sure the receivers were working.

"I think we've been gone from the party long enough," Joan said.

Auggie turned off his computer, and Annie handed him the case that the other equipment was stored in. He opened the case, ran his fingers over the case's contents and found the spot in the foam for the web cam. On the second try, the camera fit in the opening. He snapped the case closed and slid it under his side of the bed.

"Ready to rejoin the party?" he asked as he got up from the desk and walked toward the door. He opened the door and with a gallant sweep of his arm said, "Ladies, after you."

"Did you get your email sorted out," Amanda asked Joan. "I asked where you'd disappeared to, and Freddy said you were having trouble with email."

"It was just a little glitch," Joan said. "Auggie straightened it out for me."

"He does have a magic touch with computers," Amanda said. Joan smiled and nodded.

* * *

><p>Thanks for reading. The next installment will include dinner and the after party. And ... we might find out a little more about what the mission will entail.<p> 


	10. Chapter 10 O Tannenbaum

Well, how do you think you'd react if your boss invited him or her self to your family holiday dinner? So far, it looks like things are going along ok, and Joan has had a chance to talk to her spy team. Let's rejoin them to see what happens as the party progresses.

Thanks so much for reading and sharing my version of Annie and Auggie with me. This is where I need to remind you that this is for fun, and I have no association with the people at the real (or reel) Covert Affairs.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 10 – O Tannenbaum<strong>

Auggie, Annie and Joan rejoined the party in the family room. Amanda's daughters-in-law were especially curious about Amanda's glamorous friend. Just when the questions from Sarah were about to get too personal, Amanda stepped into the doorway to announce that dinner was ready. At the last minute, she'd decided to put out place cards to be sure that Joan would be seated to her husband's right.

Although Annie appreciated the beautiful atmosphere Amanda Anderson created for her dinner parties, she no longer was in awe; but as she and Auggie walked into the dining room, Annie described the table setting and the fall arrangement on the buffet. Joan commented, "What a beautiful room."

Thanksgiving dinner began with getting the family settled. Everyone joined hands for Fred's table blessing and prayer of Thanksgiving followed by a toast and the beautifully prepared meal. Amanda had arranged the seating so that Auggie was between Joan and Annie, hoping that passing the dishes would be less uncomfortable for him. Then, she worried that Joan would seem a little too comfortable around Auggie, causing more questions from the rest of the family.

After the turkey was carved and served, the bowls of traditional Thanksgiving dishes were passed around the table. When the first dish made its way to Joan, she took a spoonful of sweet potatoes, turned to Auggie and asked quietly, but loud enough so some of the family could hear, "Auggie, what do I do now?"

Auggie turned toward her, smiled, held out his hands and said, "Just tell me what you have, I'll take it and pass it to Annie, who'll help me if I need it."

The mealtime conversation was lively and pleasant, the way a family holiday dinner should be. Joan leaned over to Auggie to whisper, "This is just a little more Norman Rockwell than I expected your family to be."

Auggie laughed. "Just wait. It gets worse after dinner."

When the dinner plates were cleared and dessert served, Mandy piped up and asked, "Do we get to trim the tree now, Grandma?"

Auggie turned to Joan to say, "What did I tell you?" It was Joan's turn to chuckle.

Then Freddy asked, "Uncle Auggie? Are you going to play Christmas music for us again this this year?"

"Sure, if you want me to. Do you have a favorite Christmas song?" Auggie asked playfully.

"Yeah. Do you still know 'Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer'?"

Auggie laughed heartily. "You remember how we both got in trouble last year over that song. I don't think I'll be doing that again," Auggie said remembering how he and Freddy both were dressed down by his mother last year because of their taste in Christmas music.

While the family gathered in the living room to begin setting up and decorating the tree, Sandy and Elizabeth cleared the dishes from the dining room and stored the left overs. Fred and his four older sons went downstairs to bring up the tree and boxes of decorations. Auggie walked across the foyer to the doorway of the large living room. When his fingers lightly caught the decorative woodwork that surrounded the opening, he stopped to listen. Sensing Annie's presence behind him, he whispered, "Annie?"

"What?" she asked.

"Too many people in there. I can't tell where they all are, and I don't want to walk into someone on my way to the piano," Auggie explained in a whisper. "I left my cane in the family room." Annie and Joan glanced at each other with knowing looks. There was the chink in his armor. He was uncomfortable in his own home when it was full of people, even if they were family.

"Do you want to mingle a little," Annie whispered, "or go straight to the piano?"

"Piano. I've run out of small talk with the sisters-in-law," he chuckled softly. Annie reached for his hand, squeezed it and then on her tip toes gave him a light kiss on the cheek. Auggie moved his hand to her elbow and they walked around the guests to the piano. He sat at the bench and ran his fingers silently across the keyboard.

Freddy and Mandy ran to their uncle when they noticed him at the piano. Mandy climbed up on the bench, leaned against him and asked him to play Silent Night. "Remember, Mandy, we wait to play that until the tree is decorated and the angel is on top."

"Oh, that's right," she said. "I just like the song. It's my favorite."

Auggie played a few soft chords and began his mini concert with "A Christmas Song." T.R.'s wife, Holly, wandered over to the piano and began to sing. Her daughter, Leigh Ann, ran to her mother with her arms up, and Holly reached over to pick her up without missing a note. The others joined in as the other men assembled the tree and the wives began taking the ornaments out of the tissue paper. Annie and Joan were standing on the back side of the piano and Annie remarked, "Who knew that August Anderson Super Soldier grew up in an NBC Christmas Special?"

When the tree decorating was almost complete, Amanda brought out a decorative box and announced it was time to hang the favorite ornaments. As she pulled out the ornaments separately, she called out one of her son's or grandchildren's names and they would dutifully take the ornament and hang it in a prominent place on the tree. When she called out Auggie's name, she held up an elaborate rocking horse ornament. "Mom, please go ahead and hang it yourself," Auggie called across the room.

"You are not getting out of it this year, August Anderson. Get over here," she said with authority. Auggie sighed and threw up his hands, knowing he was defeated. He got up and with his hands ever-so-slightly extended in front of him walked toward the sound of his mother's voice. Amanda touched her son's right hand and placed the rocking horse in it. Auggie examined the ornament and smiled because he remembered how much he'd loved it when he was a child.

"Come on," Amanda said. Auggie took her arm and followed her to the tree, where Amanda showed him a branch to hang it. He turned and walked back to the piano to the sound of the family's delighted applause.

"Well, the tree is almost finished," Fred said. "I need some help putting the angel on top," he continued looking down at Mandy who was jumping up and down with excitement. He handed Mandy the porcelain and fabric angel reminding her to make sure she was facing toward the room when she slipped her on the tree top. He then picked up the six-year-old around her waist and lifted her to where she could reach the top of tree and slip the angel over the top. When she'd accomplished her task, the family applauded again.

Mandy's father wove the cord through the tree and plugged her in. Fred stepped back from the tree, admiring the family's handiwork. "Are we ready to turn off the room lights and get a good look at her?" he asked. Amanda flipped off the light switch and everyone in the room exclaimed the obligatory "Oohh."

Auggie played "Silent Night" and everyone joined in the carol. Even Joan and Annie sang, and Annie was surprised at what a lovely voice Joan had.

When Amanda turned the room lights on, Joan looked at her watch and remarked to Annie that she'd better call a cab to go back to the airport. Auggie said, "I hate to speak for Annie, but I bet she'd be happy to drive you. I can suggest some killer shortcuts, and we'd be a heck of a lot cheaper than a cab."

Annie joined in saying, "Of course, I'd love to take you to the airport, especially if Auggie's riding shotgun."

Joan retrieved her coat from the closet while Auggie and Annie went upstairs to get their coats. Once inside the bedroom, Annie giggled, "What a stroke of genius for us to get some really private time with Joan."

"Why thank you, Officer Walker," Auggie said with a lopsided smile. Annie stepped in front of Auggie and put both of her hands on his chest. He gently caressed her back as she laid her head on his chest.

"You know I tease you," she said softly, "but don't ever forget that as much as I love you, I respect your genius for doing what we do."

Auggie took a deep breath and hugged her tightly. "I think I knew that, but thank you for reminding me."

Annie picked up her handbag and pulled the long strap across her body. As they walked down the hall to the staircase, she dug in the bag for the rental's keys. Joan was waiting at the bottom of the staircase with her coat on and carrying the tote bag she had brought in earlier. Annie smiled at Joan and asked, "Ready?"

Auggie opened the door for Joan and Annie. There was a last minute flurry of goodbyes before they stepped onto the porch. Auggie chose not to open his cane and to take Annie's arm for the walk to their car. When they reached the passenger side, Annie placed Auggie's hand on the door handle to the front seat, but instead of opening it and getting in, he opened the back door for Joan and offered her a steadying hand as she climbed into the SUV wearing her stiletto pumps. Annie started the car and began backing out of the driveway.

Joan broke the easy silence by suggesting, "Annie, drive a few blocks and park for a few minutes. We need to double check something."

"Did you forget something?" Annie asked while looking into the rear view mirror.

"No … just being cautious."

Annie realized what her boss was saying. When she stopped the car a few blocks away from the house, Joan pulled a small wand-like device from her bag. Auggie turned in his seat and held his hand out over the back of his seat, and Joan placed the device in his hand. "This should take only a few minutes," Auggie said as he slipped out of the SUV.

He switched on the device and swept the SUV with it, listening carefully for any indication that someone had slipped into the driveway and planted a listening or tracking bug on the vehicle. Annie turned in her seat to face Joan, "I could have done that."

"Yes, and so could I, but Auggie doesn't have that many opportunities anymore to be the officer he wants to be. Let him take care of us the way he's been trained," Joan whispered.

Annie realized how deeply Joan not only cared for Auggie but respected him as an officer and a man. Auggie climbed back in the SUV reporting that the car appeared to be clean, but to be sure he passed it over the top of the dash and under it.

As Annie pulled out of the neighborhood on to the main thoroughfare, Auggie asked Joan about the background for their trip down to St. Louis. "OK, Boss, what's the real story here," Auggie asked.

Joan pulled two files out of her Coach tote bag, one considerably thicker than the other. The thick file was the Braille one for Auggie. The thinner file that Auggie placed in the space between his seat and the console was Annie's that contained the same information as well as photos of the people they would be tracking. As Joan began to explain the situation, Auggie started reading his file.

Joan reviewed the case for her ace duo. CIA officer Craig Johnson had been working for a St. Louis based technology development think tank as part of his NOC. The Agency had contracted with the think tank to develop light weight night vision glasses with undetectable audio and video equipment embedded into the frames. Johnson had shared some concerns with the Agency about how day-to-day operations of the project were proceeding. Both Johnson and his handlers and bosses were afraid of his cover being blown if he questioned too much.

The Agency sent in a second officer with a technical research background, Chang Lee. He had applied for a job posted on the internet for a research scientist. Since he really was an honors graduate with a Master's degree from Johns Hopkins, he got the job on his own merit. When he went in, his job was to work on the project and nose around to see if something was off.

"Why are Auggie and I being sent to St. Louis? It seems like you've got it covered," Annie observed.

"Covered, yes. But as we know, not everything is what it seems to be. We have reasons to believe that Lee is slipping bits of information about the project to the Chinese. He's the one we want you to plant the listening and tracking devices on. We don't want to involve a member of the existing team in the surveillance," Joan explained.

Auggie fiddled with his folded cane and gently slapped it into his left hand while he was listening to Joan and thinking about the assignment. "So, Joan, what do we do with the intelligence we gather?" he asked.

"We'll be wired into you, so unless we have a technical problem, we will figure that out as we go along. The important thing right now is to pin point who is leaking information on our project. This is important and will be an immense help to the military," Joan said. "We cannot afford to have any more information compromised."

"Understood," Annie said. "We'll find out what's going on."

"Is there any particular place you want us to stay?" Auggie asked.

"No. You'll want to find someplace close to our suspect with good reception," Joan said with a smile knowing Auggie was trying to figure out how to justify staying at the Ritz Carlton.

Annie pulled up to the curb at the airport and stopped. While Joan gathered her belongings, Auggie got out of the vehicle and opened the back door for Joan and offered his hand to help her step out. She grasped his hand to steady herself as she stepped down. Auggie smiled at her, and Joan whispered a "Thank you," as she smiled and squeezed his hand.

"Have a safe flight, Joan," Auggie said.

Annie yelled out the open car door, "Bye, Joan. We'll stay in touch." Joan waved to Annie as she started walking toward the terminal entrance.

Auggie climbed back into the Escalade and buckled his seat belt. "Well, for all the Anderson holiday traditions, we sort of had a non-traditional Thanksgiving this year, didn't we?"

Annie laughed as she watched traffic waiting for an opening to pull out. "I suppose this is what our holidays will be like as long as we work at the agency. There aren't any real holidays, even for the bosses like Joan and Arthur."

Auggie nodded his agreement.

When they pulled into the driveway at home, only Aaron and Cynthia's car remained. Annie commented that it looked like Cynthia was staying to help clean up. Auggie said, "Well, we'd better get in there and lend a hand."

Annie cleared her throat sarcastically.

"What?" Auggie countered. "I can help."

"Yeah, by sneaking a beer out of the fridge and sneaking off for the late news in the family room with your dad," Annie reminded him with a punch to his left arm as they sauntered up the main walk to the front door. They crossed the porch and Auggie reached to the door knob to open the door. Annie placed her hand over Auggie's to stop him. She reached up and kissed him … first on the cheek and then more passionately on the lips. "Thank you for a wonderful Thanksgiving."

"Thank you for coming with me," Auggie said caressing her in a gentle, but firm hug.

Auggie reached for the doorknob again and opened the door. They both paused and took deep breaths before entering the foyer and the Glencoe compartment of their lives. Coming around the corner into the breakfast room, kitchen area, Auggie said, "Hi … is there anything we can do to help?"

Amanda turned from slipping a large meat platter on a shelf in the cabinet. "August Anderson … your timing is still impeccable. We have about five minutes worth of work left in here. Your dad and Aaron are in the family room. Why don't you and Annie go enjoy a nightcap?"

"What about the boxes we brought up with the tree decorations?" Auggie asked.

"You brothers took those down to the storage area. We're good, so go relax," Amanda commanded.

Walking into the family room, Annie whispered, "You knew that's what would happen, didn't you?"

Auggie didn't respond verbally. He merely raised his eyebrows and smiled.

The three couples sipped their nightcaps and chatted about their successful dinner and tree decorating party. Auggie asked his dad what they needed to do on Friday for the outside decorations. "Not a whole lot, other than pulling out the boxes of lights in the morning and testing to be sure they're working," Fred said. "I got smart and hired a crew to put up the lights for us."

"So you're telling us, we pretty much have a free day tomorrow," Auggie said with a smile.

"I'll need some help pulling the tubs of lights off the top storage shelves, but that should be it. Did you have special plans?" Fred asked.

"No big plans. But we'd like to take a good, long run tomorrow, if it's not too cold. The rest of the time, we were planning to hang with you and Mom. I think Annie's looking forward to helping Mom with the house decorations," Auggie explained.

Cynthia and Aaron said their "good nights" and took off, saying they were going to get some rest so they would have the energy to get their Christmas shopping finished on Friday and Saturday.

Annie gathered the glasses in the family room and rinsed them at the kitchen sink. Amanda checked the doors and started turning off lights. Auggie had started down the hall to the staircase and Fred hurried to catch up with his son. He put his arm around Auggie and said, "Thanks, Son, for making an effort to come home this weekend. I'm always glad to have you here, but your mom is unbelievably happy to have you here with your brothers."

Auggie nodded. Then Fred lowered his voice to a whisper, "And your Annie is an amazing young woman. We love having her here with you, too."

Back in their bedroom, faces washed and into comfortable sleep clothes, Annie and Auggie literally fell into bed and into each other's arms to talk about the events of the day. Annie snuggled into his arms and took a deep breath.

"What was behind that?" Auggie asked as he rubbed her back.

"I was just thinking about how I'd like to be a little mad at you for never telling me you played the piano, but I can't. Your playing the piano made the tree trimming part of the evening so much fun," she said.

Auggie pulled her in close to him. "You thought that was fun," he said before giving her a long passionate kiss. "Let's have some real fun."

* * *

><p>Well, Joan has given Annie and Auggie their marching orders; but they do have a few more days to spend in Glencoe until they leave for St. Louis. Glencoe is probably going to have some surprises for them before they head out to do some work. Later ...<p> 


	11. Chapter 11 An Unexpected Encounter

Annie and Auggie get out of the house for some fresh air and have an unexpected encounter with a long-time friend of Auggie's. The encounter could result in an interesting experience ... it could ... or not. One of the main reasons Annie and Auggie wanted to spend the weekend in Glencoe was to help his parents to get ready for Christmas, so they have a busy day ahead of them.

I appreciate your taking time to read my story. It's fun to share. And, I think I'm supposed to remind you that I have no association with Covert Affairs ... dad gummit! Enjoy ...

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 11 - An Unexpected Encounter<strong>

Friday morning Annie and Auggie slept in until about seven thirty … well, Annie slept until seven thirty. Auggie woke about an hour earlier, but lay as still as he could and enjoyed the sounds of Annie sleeping. As he gradually woke up, Auggie realized that they were sleeping on their sides facing each other. He could feel her warm breath on his face. He couldn't resist gently touching her face and tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. She shifted slightly and let out a soft, contented moan as she settled deeper into her pillow.

A self-satisfied smile spread across Auggie's face and he imagined a visual picture in his mind of the person snuggled beside him. He draped his arm around Annie and tried to doze a little longer. It didn't work.

When Annie finally awakened, she had the odd sensation that she was being watched. She opened her eyes and was met with Auggie's smiling face. She watched him curiously for a few seconds before she whispered, "Auggie? What are you doing and how long have you been awake?"

"What makes you think I'm doing anything?"

"Auuugeee," she countered.

"OK … I've been awake a while, and if you must know I was visualizing what you looked like curled up and sleeping so contentedly."

"Ohh ...," she said as she schooched closer to him for a morning kiss. "I'm sure your imagination is much more attractive than the reality of it all.

Annie rolled over and slid out of bed. On her way to the bathroom, Annie called over her shoulder, "You up for a run before breakfast?"

"That sounds great," he answered. "We've spent a lot of time in the house the last couple of days."

She washed her face and brushed her teeth, but before she dressed, Annie checked her weather app on her phone. Temperature was just above freezing at 35. "It's pretty chilly this morning," she called to Auggie. "We're gonna have to dress in layers. Did you bring gloves and ear muffs?"

Auggie came out of the bathroom wearing just his sleep pants. "Gloves, yes. No ear muffs … but I bet we can find a couple of knit hats to keep our ears warm." He walked to the chest of drawers that Annie had never seen him open. Auggie ran his hand down the front of the chest and squatted down to open the bottom drawer. After a couple of minutes of rummaging through its contents, he came up with two wool knitted caps and a couple of scarfs.

"I don't even know why I bother to pack when we come here," she laughed.

"What color are these?" Auggie asked.

"Dark red and grey. I'll take the red one," she said grabbing it. "Both scarves are grey."

They dressed for their run and went downstairs for a cup of coffee before they took off. Like last spring, they walked and jogged to the trail for a real run through the woods and along the creek. They used the time alone to talk about their trip to St. Louis. They had concerns for each other's safety.

"We'll be fine," Auggie assured her. "We can work the problem, whatever it is. You have to keep telling me everything you see, and I don't think that's a problem because it's practically second nature to you anyway. I just don't want for you to become distracted and forget to keep talking to me. We have the night vision camera and our crew back in Langley for back up."

"Mmm, and if I told you I'm a little concerned about your being out in the car alone with only a web cam and a tech team half a continent away for protection, you'd tell me I'm over-reacting, wouldn't' you?" Annie said softly.

Auggie grinned, slowed his pace and released his gently hold on Annie's elbow. He stopped, held up his hands, and with an ever widening grin said, "You forget about these."

Annie's face mirrored his bright smile. She swatted his left arm with her right hand and reminded him, "You are such a mess." He laughed, took her arm again and they continued walking toward the trial. As they approached the trail parking lot, Annie pulled the tether out of her pocket and handed one end to Auggie.

Auggie took a firm grasp of the loop and said, "No more talk about the mission, now. We're doing this to clear our heads. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Annie said, stopping and kissing him on the cheek.

"Good," he said. "Now, let's rock this trail."

"There are only a couple of cars in the lot today, so it looks like we won't have much company," she said walking to the big tree they always used for stretches.

As they started the run, Auggie teased her about keeping him on a short leash. He was tempted to drop the tether just to get a reaction from her, but decided against it, realizing he hadn't been paying attention and where they were on the trail. His sense of self-preservation took over and he'd wait until the end of the run for his few seconds of running free.

At the end of the run, they stretched again and started walking back to the Anderson home. Walking up the hill from the parking lot Auggie draped his left arm around Annie's shoulders and they chatted about what they would be doing to help Amanda and Fred get the house ready for Christmas. To the passersby they looked like any other affectionate young couple who'd come home for Thanksgiving.

Annie observed a young man who appeared to be about Auggie's age jogging toward them. As he approached closer, he broke into a smile and slowed down. "Auggie Anderson!" the man exclaimed.

Annie and Auggie stopped. The voice sounded vaguely familiar … extremely vague. He put on his brightest smile and said, "It sure is … and, you are?..."

The other runner looked perplexed. "You don't recognize me? It's Bob Henderson."

"Bob … of course," Auggie said putting the more mature voice with a hazy image of his fellow Eagle Scout and wrestling team mate. Auggie offered his right hand. Bob took his hand, shook it and pulled Auggie into a man hug.

Bob and Auggie stepped back from each other. "Auggie, man, I'm surprised you didn't recognize me. We haven't changed that much … maybe the sun was in your eyes."

Auggie took a half a second to catch his breath and decide how to proceed. This was a new one for him to handle … childhood friend who was unaware he was blinded serving his country. Annie distracted Bob by smiling at him and holding out her hand. "Hi, I'm Annie Walker."

Bob shook her hand and was genuinely warm when he said he was happy to meet her. Auggie decided there was no way to sugar coat what was coming next. "Uhh, Bob, I guess you didn't get the news about me. About four years ago I was serving in Iraq, and I was blinded in an explosion," Auggie said in an even tone. Even though it was a little more than four years after the explosion, at times it was surprisingly emotional to talk about.

Annie stepped sideways to stand just a little closer to Auggie and slipped her right hand into his left hand. She kept smiling at Bob, who had a stunned expression, and Auggie squeezed her hand.

"Man, Auggie I am so sorry I didn't know … I've been working in a law firm out of the West Coast since I finished at Northwestern. I don't know why Mom and Dad would have not told me that had happened."

Auggie wrinkled his brow in thought. "Well, maybe they haven't heard. And I'm out here without my white cane with Annie … you had no chance to recognize it." Auggie smiled and said a little sadly, "I guess it's a little bit of a compliment, because you didn't pick up on my blindness immediately."

"Well," Bob said, "nevertheless, I'm glad I ran into you. Let's try to get together before I go back to San Francisco."

"Annie and I will be at my mom and dad's until after lunch on Sunday. We're going to take a little road trip for a few days to give Annie the chance to see a little bit of our beautiful Midwestern scenery before we go back to D.C."

Bob said he would check with his wife, Jan, about their schedule and then give Auggie a call. "Are your parents still in the book?" he asked as he jogged off. Auggie nodded.

Annie and Auggie stood quietly for a few moments. Annie waved to Bob when he looked back as he jogged toward the trail. Auggie took a deep breath. "You handled that beautifully," Annie said, leaning into his left side and grasping his arm gently.

"Thanks, I was at a loss for words. Most of the people I knew before Iraq know what happened to me, and I know how to deal with people I meet as a blind man."

As he talked, Auggie moved his left arm around Annie's shoulders and she slipped her arm around him just above his waist, and they walked silently.

Amanda was making a fresh pot of coffee when she heard footsteps coming across the patio. The breakfast room door opened and Annie and Auggie slipped into the room. A few steps into the room, Annie stopped at the table and put Auggie's hand on the back of the chair where he usually sat.

"You two are kind of quiet," Amanda observed. "Everything OK?"

"Everything is fine, Mom," Auggie said shortly.

Amanda frowned questioningly at Annie, and Annie returned the frown by raising her eyebrows in an unspoken "we'll talk later."

"Well, then, the coffee will be ready in a few minutes. How about some scrambled eggs and cinnamon rolls for breakfast before we tackle the decorations?"

Auggie had time to pull himself together. "Mom, you know scrambled eggs is my specialty," Auggie said as he walked toward the refrigerator. "You enjoy your coffee. I'll do the eggs," and turning his head toward where he last heard Annie, "and I bet Ms. Walker here will help me by warming up the rolls."

"I can handle that," Annie said walking past Auggie and patting his back.

* * *

><p>After the family had eaten breakfast, Amanda shooed Annie and Auggie off to get dressed for the busy day she had planned for them. After they had showered and were getting dressed, Auggie asked Annie, "Don't you think it's ironic that my mother is insisting that I help with decorations?"<p>

Annie laughed at him and hit him with the sock she was getting ready to pull on. "You're trying to come up with a way to get out of this, aren't you? And, you're finding it a little harder to get out of something than work the problem of doing something you really WANT to do."

Auggie grinned sheepishly. "Busted. But I really do wonder how much help I'm going to be beyond carrying some boxes," he said shaking his head.

"Humor your mom. She loves having you home and I know you'll be a big help, because I'll make sure of it," Annie said teasingly.

"That's what frightens me."

"Liar. Nothing frightens you. I've seen you a little unnerved like this morning. But, frightened. Never." Annie said in a matter of fact tone as she stood up from tying her athletic shoes.

Auggie turned toward her, held out his arms and said, "Annie." She walked toward him, expecting an embrace. Instead, he gently grasped her arms and moved his hands up to her shoulders. Annie looked up into his face, not knowing what to expect. "Annie, today's not the day, but sometime … I don't know when … I will talk to you about my fears. You and my mom think I'm fearless. That would be foolish and I know it. Sometime we'll have that discussion." Then, he drew her into an embrace and kissed the top of her head as she nodded.

With just four people in the house, Auggie moved quickly descending the stairs. Annie hurried after him. They found no one on the main level and went to the basement to start carrying up the outside lights and decorations. Auggie would pick up a box or a tub, ask where it belonged and deposit it in the right room upstairs. Annie followed his lead, carrying lighter boxes of decorations and remembering to tell him what she'd added to each room. When all the boxes were upstairs, they both flopped into the family room leather sofa. "That was a combined weight and elliptical training session," Annie laughed.

"Yep, and this evening the process will be reversed, except the boxes will be lighter," Auggie reminded her.

Fred and Amanda returned upstairs. Fred asked Auggie to help him unpack the outside lights in the garage to get ready for the crew coming to put them up. Annie turned to Amanda and said, "Well, I guess you're stuck with me."

Amanda laughed. "I think we'll do just fine. The first thing I want to put up is the garland in the main hall, and we'll work from there."

They worked until early afternoon when the men came in from the garage to rummage through the refrigerator for a leftover turkey sandwich. Amanda and Annie decided to take a break for a snack, too. Fred looked in the foyer and walked through the dining room and back to the kitchen. "It's beautiful, Amanda," Fred said, "but it always is."

Annie turned from spreading mayo on bread and added, "It looks like something out of a holiday magazine. My mom would have loved to decorate like this, but between military housing and having to move so often, we had a nice, big tree and lots of fresh poinsettias when we were stationed where we could get them."

"It sounds lovely," Amanda said.

"Oh, it was," Annie said. "But not magnificent like this." Changing the subject, Annie asked how it was going with untangling the lights. Fred said having Auggie's extra pair of hands made it go quickly and everything was ready for the light crew.

Over lunch Amanda said the last thing they needed to do in the house was the smaller tree in the family room. "Tree in the family room?" Auggie asked.

"Yes. Family room tree," Amanda answered.

"Where? No one said anything about a tree in the family room last year, Auggie quizzed.

"In the northwest corner by the windows. It's a slim seven and a half foot tree. Not like the giant thing in the living room. Annie and I carried up the pieces and put it together just before you came in." Amanda explained.

"Mom, I know how much you love Christmas. But don't you think this is becoming excessive?" Auggie asked.

"Not at all. I love doing it and I have great help this year. I think we're starting a lovely new family tradition here, as long as national security doesn't interfere," Amanda countered.

Following Annie and his mother to the family room, Auggie let out a deep breath and whispered, "Oh, boy," to himself. Annie stepped back and slipped her hand in Auggie's and he knew she was getting ready to show him the tree.

First Annie described how she and Amanda had rearranged the corner of the room and repositioned the chairs. Auggie nodded and located the chair to the right of the tree with the side of his leg and then the back with his hand. He walked around the front of the chair with his right hand slightly extended, searching for the tree. When he located it, Auggie felt the branches and tried to gauge its width and height.

"The label on the box says it's seven and a half feet tall and it's the slim model. We have three tubs of ornaments to put on it," Annie explained. Auggie muttered "uh huh" and found the chair on the left side of the tree.

Auggie settled into the chair and asked Annie to scoot one of the ornament tubs a little closer to him. "I'm going to take this slow and carefully," Auggie said, "I don't want to break anything unpacking them."

"Don't worry about breaking anything," Amanda said walking into the room. "Most of them are fabric and wood ornaments. It's an Americana tree that I put up the year you went to Iraq."

Auggie grimaced, took the lid off the box and reached in gingerly to pick up the first ornament and unwrap it. Holding out the ornament to Annie, he said, "Looks like a stuffed star to me. I bet it's red, white and blue."

Annie took the ornament, picked up a hanger and said, "Show off."

"Mom?" Auggie asked, "how did you accumulate three boxes of Americana ornaments?"

"The Christmas you were overseas I decided to do the patriotic tree to remind the family to keep you in their prayers. I bought many of the ornaments at several of the local holiday craft fairs," she explained.

Auggie picked up another ornament, unwrapped it and announced, "Heart." Annie smiled and took it from him.

"Any comments about color or fabric design?" Annie asked.

"Nope … But, Mom, didn't you go a little overboard on the patriotic ornaments?"

Amanda smiled wistfully. "Not really. The next Christmas I was so sad because you wouldn't come, the daughters-in-law and many of my friends bought me more ornaments. It just grew from there. Last year, I put the word out that I had plenty of ornaments and didn't want to get a bigger tree."

Auggie lowered his head when his mother shared how sad she was the first Christmas he didn't come home. He kept it lowered for a time. "Mom?" Auggie said trying to get her to answer so he could determine where she was in the room.

"Yes, Auggie," she answered.

Auggie raised his head and turned to face her. "I am so sorry about not coming home that year. But I couldn't. I've never been as overwhelmed as I was that first Christmas after I lost my sight. I didn't realize how much I hurt you until now. Please accept my apologies."

"Oh, Auggie," Amanda said leaning down to give him a hug, "Just because I was sad you weren't here doesn't mean I didn't understand. You had just completed your rehab and were trying to get acclimated at work. I understood … but I still missed you."

Annie felt like she was eavesdropping on the conversation, but couldn't figure out how to gracefully leave the room without being obvious. So she started pulling ornaments out of one of the other boxes and continued decorating. When she pulled out the patriotic hand-painted angel, Annie let out a little gasp. "Wow, this is amazing."

"It is lovely, isn't it?" Amanda said as Annie reached for Auggie's hand and placed the angel in it. She described the elaborately painted wood angel that was designed to set atop the tree. Auggie's fingers inspected the decoration, smiled and handed her back to Annie. "One of my friends found her at a gallery and bought her for me in 2009. Freddie calls her Uncle Auggie's Guardian Angel. He says she makes sure he doesn't get hurt again."

Annie set the decoration on a side table and left the room to get the step stool out of the pantry. She placed the stool in front of the tree, picked up the angel, stepped up and tried to set the angel in her place of honor. She could stretch to the top of the tree, but she felt shaky and feared she could lose her balance. Amanda had left the room.

Annie looked down at Auggie carefully unwrapping tissue paper from the ornaments. "Auggie, I need help," she said.

"What can I do?"

"Come here and help me keep from losing my balance."

"OK. Where is here?"

Annie chuckled. "I'm on the step stool about at your one o'clock."

Auggie pushed the box of ornaments to the side and walked toward Annie with his right hand extended slightly in front of him. Annie reached down to squeeze his shoulder and Auggie raised his head to smile at her.

"That's what I need," Annie whispered, "a strong shoulder to lean on."

Auggie laughed and reached out to wrap his arm around Annie's waist to steady her. Annie stretched up on her tip toes and secured the angle to the tree top. "There, I think that will do," she said coming down from her toes.

"Ready to get down?" Auggie asked.

"Mmm Huh," she answered as she leaned on Auggie so she could step down. But before she could take the step, Auggie grasped her around her waist with both hands, picked her up and lowered her to the floor. Annie let out a little gasp and then laughed in surprise. Auggie set her down in front of him, hugged her and kissed the top of her head. Annie hugged him back and they stood in front of the partially decorated tree for several minutes in the embrace.

Amanda walked past the family room entrance and smiled at the tender scene. She smiled and thought, "Those two haven't admitted to themselves how much they love each other."

Annie finally leaned back, looked up into Auggie's face as she touched his cheek and whispered, "As much as I love this, it's not getting the tree decorated."

They released their embrace and went back to work after Auggie gave her one more kiss on her forehead.

About an hour and a half later the tree was trimmed and the room was tidied of all stray pieces of tissue paper and extra ornament hangers. Auggie took the ornament box back to the basement, and Annie dragged out the vacuum to pick up the lint and Christmas tree branch residue. The shades in the room were drawn and the sun had gone behind clouds, so the room was quite dark. Annie put away the vacuum, turned off the overhead light and turned on the tree lights, which were red, white and blue. She stood back from the tree admiring its warm glow.

She heard the door to the basement close and turned to see Auggie walking toward her. "Hey," she said to let him know where she was standing.

"Hey, yourself," he said holding out his hand, which she grasped and they let their fingers intertwine.

Giving his hand a gentle tug, Annie said, "Come here," as she walked toward the love seat that conveniently faced the tree. They snuggled in the loveseat and Annie described the tree along with the other decorations that Amanda had added to the room. Amanda overheard their conversation, and as much as she wanted to be a part of it, decided to give them the privacy she thought they needed.

The only noise in the house was the muffled sounds of the crew outside installing lights on the house. Amanda was relishing the warmth and happiness that surrounded Annie and Auggie. She stopped to enjoy the moment and be thankful for it. The phone rang, and the caller id indicated an unknown number. Amanda sighed, hoping it wasn't a marketer who had circumvented the no-call list.

"Is Auggie Anderson available?" a confident male voice asked.

"May I tell him who's calling?" Amanda asked in return, knowing if someone from his office was calling they would use his cell phone.

"Of course. This is Bob Henderson. Auggie and I wrestled together in high school."

As he spoke, Amanda started walking toward the family with the cordless receiver. "Just a moment, Bob," she said. "Auggie," she interrupted the conversation with Annie, "this is Bob Henderson for you."

Auggie turned toward his mother and made a face that made Amanda smile and shake her head. She lowered the receiver and held it against her side so she could whisper, "Play nice."

Amanda smiled at Annie as she handed the receiver to Auggie, who took a deep breath and put an artificial smile on his face. "Bob," he said enthusiastically, "what's happening?"

"I was hoping we could get together for dinner tomorrow night to … well … catch up. Would that work for you and your friend, Annie?"

"Oh, Bob, I'm afraid not. We're having an informal family thing tomorrow night. It's my mom's annual turkey tetrazzini night," Auggie chuckled.

"I understand," Bob said. "But, how about lunch? Will that work?"

"I think we can do lunch tomorrow," Auggie said. "Let me check with Annie."

Auggie held his hand over the receiver and asked Annie if she thought they could do lunch tomorrow. As she got up from the love seat, she patted his back, "Sure … it's fine with me, if you want to."

Auggie returned to the phone call. "That will be great, Bob. Where do you want to meet?"

"There's a nice little restaurant downtown called Vernon's on Vernon. Why don't we meet there about twelve forty-five?"

"Sure. Annie and I were there last summer. That sounds great. See you tomorrow."

"Annie?"

"What Auggie?" Annie asked as she repositioned an ornament on the tree.

"Do you mind ending this call? I've never used this receiver, and I don't know which is the end button."

Annie walked across the room, took the phone from him, studied it a couple of seconds and pressed the off button. "There are three buttons in the first row … big ones on the left and right and a little bitty one in the center," she explained. "The left button is talk, the right button is off, and the small one in the center is for flash," she said as she placed the phone back in his left hand and gently guided the index finger of his right hand over the phone's buttons.

Auggie concentrated on the phone's configuration for a few seconds, nodded and said, "Thanks. Sure would be easier if they were all alike."

Annie chuckled as she went to hang up the receiver. "Yeah, kinda like the debit card machines at grocery stores. If you'd decided to keep the Office of Congressional Affairs job, maybe you could have lobbied Congress for that."

"That would have been unethical," Auggie yelled back at her. "I would have been lobbying for personal gain."

"And the other lobbyists aren't?" she shot back sarcastically.

Auggie laughed again but with a changed tone asked Annie to come back to the family room. When he heard her footsteps come out of the hardwood foyer into the carpeted room, he patted the loveseat indicating he wanted her to sit beside him. When she curled up beside him, Auggie draped his arm around her and pulled her close.

Annie looked up into his face and smiled through a frown. "Is there something on your mind?"

"No. I just realized how nice it is to enjoy some calm, quiet time with you. I wanted to enjoy a few more minutes of it … of us … I guess I'm making a memory," he explained quietly.

"I understand," Annie said, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Amanda Anderson returned home from a quick run to the supermarket, stashed her few purchases and stepped into the family room doorway. She heard the young couple chatting quietly and could tell they both were relaxed and happy. She considered leaving the room, but the atmosphere had such a happy aura that she couldn't resist joining them for a moment.

"There you are," she said walking toward a chair that was angled toward the loveseat.

Auggie and Annie greeted her in unison with a "Hi." Then Auggie asked, "Did you go out?"

"Just to the market to get some filets for dinner … to go with the leftovers from yesterday. I thought both you and your dad would appreciate some real meat since we're doing the turkey tetrazzini tomorrow night," she teased. "The room looks lovely. Thank you, Annie, for finishing it for me and for cleaning up, too."

"You are so welcome," Annie replied. "But Auggie did more than his fair share of helping and toting boxes when we were finished."

"I know," Amanda said as she walked past Auggie and patted his shoulder. "I believe we need to have a celebratory glass of wine. Don't you think that's in order?"

When Fred came in from supervising the outside lighting crew, he laughed at the scene of his wife, son and Annie curled up in the family room enjoying their wine.

"I can't leave you three alone without having you break out a bottle of wine," he teased.

"Go freshen up and join us. We're just relaxing before dinner," Amanda suggested. "Are the outside lights ready to turn on?"

"We're ready to go. The timers are set to turn on at dusk. I think the only other thing this home needs to be ready for Christmas is some presents under the tree," Fred said leaving the room.

After dinner when the kitchen was cleaned up, Amanda said, "OK, I think it's time to check out the lights out front."

Annie went in the family room to grab her sweater, but Auggie continued sitting at the table. His expression was pensive. Annie was slipping her arms into the cardigan as she walked back into the breakfast rom. "Aren't you coming?" she asked Auggie.

"Well, rooms with a view and Christmas lights, no matter how well done, are sort of wasted on me."

"Even if we describe them? … Come on, Auggie. Your dad seems so proud of the lights … please come." Annie said giving his shoulder a tug.

"Ms. Walker, you are too persuasive. No wonder you're so good at what you do," he said as he stood up. Annie wrapped her arms around Auggie's left arm and they meandered down the foyer hall to the home's front entrance. The door was ajar, and they could hear Fred and Amanda exclaiming how beautiful the lights looked this year. The lights in the garland that surrounded the door glowed through the crack.

Annie opened the door and they stepped out to the front porch. "Whoa," Annie whispered, "this is about like the Griswald's in the movie. It's beautifully done, but Auggie … it's amazing."

Auggie smiled and shook his head as he took Annie's arm to walk across the yard. At the curb, Annie turned them around facing the house. Annie wasn't sure how to describe the scene. Over the past several months Auggie had shared with her casually about how his visual memory was fading. "Well, for starters," she said, "it's bright, happy and tasteful. White lights outline the roofline, the dormers on the third floor and all of the windows. Multi-color lights are on the two large spruce trees on the right side of the lawn as well as the topiary trees on either side of the entrance."

Auggie smiled and nodded, but then frowned in concentration as he tried to imagine what the house looked like. When he was a teenager, they decorated with multi-color lights along the roofline and a garland over the front door. Auggie called to his father, "Dad, did you drink some kind of special Christmas Kool-Aid? From what Annie's described, this is pretty spectacular."

Fred walked across the lawn to join Annie and Auggie. He stood beside Auggie to admire the house and explained, "Well, son, it's just hard not to add a little bit every year. Most of our neighbors do about the same kind of decorating, and we don't want to be the Grinchs on the block. Besides, the grandkids love it."

Auggie felt Annie shiver in her sweater. "We'd better get back inside. I don't think either of us is dressed for the cold Chicago night," he said as he started walking back toward the house with Annie.

Inside the house, Auggie whispered, "Mission accomplished."

"Yes, mission accomplished. Your parents just want you to be a part of everything that's going on. We needed to do that for them," Annie said giving him a hug. Then, they kissed. Amanda and Fred came in from outside and startled the lovers.

Amanda laughed, "Looks like I don't need to hang mistletoe this year. You two take your own wherever you go." Both Annie and Auggie flushed slightly in embarrassment.


	12. Chapter 12 Meeting an Old Friend

Let's join Annie and Auggie on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. He has a lot on his mind with an upcoming operation, but he's accepted a lunch invitation that he's not excited about.

I don't have any association with the folks at Covert Affairs, so I do this just for fun and my own amusement. I'm glad you're having fun with me by reading.

* * *

><p>Chapter 12 – Meeting an Old Friend<p>

Saturday morning Auggie awakened early and couldn't go back to sleep. He reached for his watch on the bedside table and opened it to check the time … six thirty. It would be oversleeping on a workday, but seriously too early to wake Annie on a holiday weekend, even if accidentally. He slipped out of bed as quietly as he could manage, picked up his phone and its Braille input device, grabbed an old sweatshirt out of his dresser and slipped out of the room. He closed the bedroom door, and once in the hallway pulled the sweatshirt on over his tee shirt.

The house was cool and quiet. Now that he had pulled on the sweatshirt, the coolness was comfortable. And he could use some quiet … yes, quiet was good. And, with a pot of hot coffee, the quiet would be even better. He went downstairs, stopped in the downstairs powder room and then made his way into the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. He sat at the breakfast table to sip his coffee and collect his thoughts for the day and the upcoming trip to St. Louis.

Lunch with his high school friend, since it was going to be at a casual restaurant, shouldn't present any problems. He and Annie had eaten at the restaurant last summer, so he knew it was a comfortable space to maneuver. But, he was not looking forward to the possibility that his every move would be scrutinized by Bob and his wife, Jan … "Whoever the heck she is," he thought to himself.

He thought through what Annie and he had to accomplish in St. Louis and who would be the best of his staff to be on standby in the DPD Tech Ops Office to back them up. Barber, Sandy, Millie and Jason were used to working with him. They understood him and he knew he didn't have to explain every move to any of them.

He called Joan's office number expecting to leave her a voice mail about the officers he would like to work with on the mission. Joan answered.

"Mrs. Campbell?" he queried. "You're certainly in the office early."

"Auggie, are you forgetting we're an hour ahead of Chicago?"

"Nope. But even with the hour difference, it's early for a Saturday … even for you."

"Auggie," Joan said, "I know you didn't call just to chat. What's on your mind?"

"I've been thinking who Annie and I need to be working with us while we're in the field. Do you think you can call in Barber, Sandy, Millie and Jason to monitor us from that end?"

Joan smiled to herself. She could only try to send him on a vacation, but it didn't matter. Auggie Anderson's mind was always hard at work on national security. "I'll start making some phone calls," Joan said. "I'll call you back and leave a message, if you can't talk."

"Thanks, Joan … you know, you're the best," Auggie said, ending the call.

She shook her head and smiled again. She understood Annie's frustration at his habit of never taking time to end a phone call properly. He already was thinking through the steps he and Annie needed to take to accomplish the first part of their mission tomorrow night. Auggie cradled his warm coffee cup in his hands and decided the first step was to have his team determine whether or not the dry cleaners had a security system and how to disable it, if one were in place.

Auggie picked up his phone to call Joan back. When she answered, he asked her to have Barber call his cell, if she reached him before twelve thirty. Joan assured him, she'd remember to tell Barber to call.

Auggie poured himself a second cup of coffee and returned to the table. He heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He recognized his mother's gait on the stair treads, and it caused him to smile. The smile turned to a slight frown when he tried to pair the sounds of her footsteps with the visual image in his mind of his mother. He realized she'd changed and aged since he last looked into her face and said "goodbye" when he left for Iraq. He felt a little guilty, realizing he may have added to some of the lines that had surely deepened on her face and some of her grey hair.

Less than a minute from when he heard Amanda's steps, she entered the kitchen area. "Did you undersleep?" she teased.

"Not at all," Auggie replied. "I couldn't go back to sleep, and I didn't want to wake Annie, so here I am with a pot of hot coffee."

Amanda poured herself a cup and sat at the breakfast table with Auggie. "You look pensive this morning. A lot on your mind?"

Auggie nodded and smiled. His mother was as good at reading him as he was at picking up on Annie's concerns. It must be a familial talent, he thought to himself. "Well, for starters," Auggie explained, "Annie and I are having lunch today with my high school friend, Bob Henderson, and his wife. I just don't know what to expect. I haven't had many of those kinds of encounters."

"Hmm," Amanda said, "You know it will be fine. Annie will be with you, and if you're uncomfortable; you can leave early." Taking another sip of coffee, Amanda asked, "What time are you meeting them for lunch?"

"Just before one o'clock."

"Well," Amanda said devilishly, "do you want me to give you a call on your cell about two thirty with an urgent request to make a stop at the supermarket on your way home?"

Auggie laughed. "That won't be necessary. But, call if you need us to stop for you on our way back."

* * *

><p>Annie awakened as the morning light began to filter into the bedroom. She was curled up on her right side as she opened her eyes slowly, stretched and rolled over to kiss Auggie … who wasn't there. She rose up and read the digital clock … seven forty-five … and noticed his phone was missing from its docking station on the night stand. She smiled, realizing he'd slipped out of the room to let her sleep longer.<p>

Annie pulled on a pair of running pants and dug in Auggie's sweatshirt drawer for a shirt to pull over her tee shirt. After splashing water on her face and running a brush through her hair, she headed downstairs for a cup of coffee. "Morning," she said coming around the corner into the breakfast room.

"Good morning," Auggie and Amanda said in unison. Before pouring herself a cup of coffee, Annie walked behind Auggie, put her hand on his shoulder and started to lean down to kiss his cheek. Before she could give him the kiss, his right hand reached up and lovingly patted her hand.

Amanda's heart was warmed at the ease in which they communicated. Auggie held onto Annie's hand as long as he could as Annie moved away from him to the coffee pot. Annie took her mug back to table along with the pot to freshen everyone's coffee. "What's on tap this morning?" Annie asked Auggie. "Do we have time for a run?"

Auggie thought for a few minutes, "No, I need to spend some time at the computer before we go to lunch. You can go without me, if you want."

"Nope, I'm fine." Annie said. "I'll hang with you. Want some cereal, Soldier Boy?"

"Mom, do you have any bagels?" Auggie asked.

"Why, yes … there's a bag of mini bagels in the bread keeper," Amanda said, getting up to retrieve the bread. "I think that sounds good, too. Shall we toast them?"

Amanda popped bagels in the toaster while Annie pulled out tubs of plain and flavored cream cheese. Auggie asked where his dad was, and Amanda explained he was working upstairs and would probably take a break soon for some coffee and a bite to eat. They ate their light breakfast, and Auggie excused himself to check his computer and make some phone calls back to Langley. Annie made a second pot of coffee and helped Amanda straighten the kitchen. She pulled three travel mugs out of the cupboard and poured them full of fresh coffee to take upstairs. On her way back to the bedroom Annie dropped a mug off in Fred's office with a cheery "good morning." He thanked her, and as she left the room mused at how easily she fit into their family.

Annie returned to the bedroom, and entered quietly when she realized that Auggie was on the phone with Langley. Auggie heard her come in and raised his hand toward her to let her know he realized she was in the room with him. He was listening to his phone through the ear buds and making notes on the computer. When he stopped to ask Barber a question, Annie set his coffee cup down at his three o'clock and showed him where it was by guiding his hand to it. Still talking with Barber, Auggie nodded and smiled.

Annie set her own cup on Auggie's night stand and stretched out on his side of the bed to sip her coffee. She shifted around with his pillow behind her back, and then added her pillow for comfort. Hearing her rustling around made him smile. When his phone call ended, Auggie turned to Annie and with a smirky smile asked, "You having a princess and the pea moment?"

"Just trying to get comfortable," she answered seductively.

"Are you comfortable now?" Auggie asked as he stood and started walking toward her. Annie set the cup back on the night table. Auggie's right hand was slightly extended in front of him as he walked toward Annie, his face lit up in a teasing smile. Annie couldn't help but return the smile as she reached out to take his hand to let him know exactly where she was sitting.

Annie quickly scooted over and pulled him toward her and she tossed the extra pillow to the other side of the bed and laid down. Auggie carefully lowered his body over hers and kissed her passionately and nuzzled her neck. They helped each other wiggle out of their clothes between kisses and caresses and spent the next half an hour exploring each other's bodies and making love. When they were happily exhausted, Auggie rolled on his back and took a deep breath. Annie rolled to her side and he wrapped his left arm around her and pulled her close. She kissed his shoulder and sighed, "August Anderson … I didn't realize I could love anyone as much as I love you."

Auggie was quiet for a few seconds. "Anne Catherine Walker … just when I think I couldn't love you any deeper than I do, I discover another layer to my love for you."

Annie raised up and kissed him tenderly on the cheek before she whispered, "I always feel so safe and happy when I'm with you … even when I just think about you." They lay in the embrace until they realized that they were going to have to think about getting ready for lunch with Bob and Jan.

Auggie turned his head and kissed Annie's forehead. "Who goes first?"

"You … It'll take me longer to dry my hair and do the makeup thing."

Before getting up, Auggie rolled over and patted her cheek. Annie smiled and Auggie's hand rested on her face for a few seconds enjoying being able to experience her radiant smile.

* * *

><p>Annie found a parking place close the restaurant where they were meeting Bob and Jan Henderson. On the drive to the restaurant, Auggie was more quiet than normal and fidgeted with his folded cane, slapping it softly in his left hand. Annie thought she knew what he had on his mind.<p>

"Hey, I bet lunch will go fine, but if it gets awkward and you want to leave, squeeze my knee or hand or whatever you can get a grip on twice. Then give me a few minutes to check the time on my phone and come up with an excuse why it's time for us to leave."

"Mind reading again, huh, Walker?"

"You, Mr. Anderson, are not the only one who is good at reading people's moods."

Annie swung into a parking place on the street near the restaurant entrance. Before they got out of the car, Annie reminded Auggie, "This won't be a real picnic for me either. You, at least, have high school history with Bob. I'm just going to do a lot of smiling, nodding and eating slow while you visit … or not visit."

They got out of the car, and Auggie walked toward the front of it to meet Annie, who nonchalantly touched the back of his hand with hers. Instead of reaching for her elbow immediately, he patted her on the back and said, "I appreciate you, Annie Walker."

Auggie grasped Annie's elbow lightly and unobtrusively, and they strode confidently toward the restaurant. He carried his folded cane holding it down by his leg.

Inside the restaurant, Bob Henderson and his wife were already seated at a table for four with their ice teas in front of them. "I still can't figure out why you dragged me here," Jan sighed as she stirred sweetener into the tea.

"I told you … to meet my friend, Auggie, the captain of our high school wrestling team," Bob said with an edge to his voice.

"I wish I'd feigned a headache and not come," Jan whined. "Handicapped people make me nervous."

"Auggie Anderson was and I'm sure still is one of the nicest people I've ever known. I don't know why you'd be nervous having lunch with a disabled veteran," Bob whispered to his wife. "After all, he's the one who lost his sight in the war."

Jan sighed. "Damn it, Bob, I never know how to act around a handicapped person; and I've never, ever even met a blind person. Is there anything I should know about this blind friend of yours?"

Bob though a moment about the boy with whom he'd attended middle school and high school. "Well, for starters, he's scary smart; and since he was a junior in high school, he was sort of a ladies man. He was … and I'm guessing since I saw him and his girlfriend out running … a talented athlete. At least he still has the physique of an athlete. I'm guessing he works out in a gym.

Jan became intrigued. "Why did you say he became a ladies man half way through your junior year?"

"Oh, that. Well … Auggie got braces when we were in eighth grade. He was a nice looking kid, but he had this mouth full of metal. We teased him about it, and he made more fun of himself than we made of him. Anyway … the braces came off in our junior year and he morphed into the most handsome guy in our class."

"A story about the ugly duckling turning into the handsome swan?" Jan asked, "and now back to the ugly duckling with a white cane?"

"Jan," Bob said with exasperation, "I don't think it's that dramatic. He was a nice looking boy who, in retrospect, turned into a handsome young man … just as we would wish for our son."

"I bet he became one of those arrogant jocks," Jan said with a little distain in her voice.

"That was just it," Bob remembered, "he was never arrogant … maybe a little full of himself like all of us … but always one of the most enjoyable people to be around. When we talked briefly the other day, I had the sense that he is still that person. Oh, I think I see them coming in the front door."

Annie stopped at the door to open it. As it swung in Auggie's direction, he took the bar and held the door for Annie who took a couple of steps inside and waited for Auggie to step beside her. The hostess approached the couple asking, "Table for two?"

"We're meeting someone," Auggie replied, "a Mr. Henderson. Do you know if he's here, yet?"

Annie scanned the dining room through the glass divider. "I see him over by the window." The waitress followed the couple to the table so she could give them their menus. The menus were placed at the two empty seats before either of them could request the Braille menu.

Bob stood to greet them and introduce his wife, who Annie noticed seemed more nervous than her. Auggie offered his hand to Jan who took it tentatively. Annie smiled warmly at Jan and shook her hand as well as Bob's. They all exchanged pleasantries and taking their seats, Auggie pulled Annie's chair out for her before sitting down. Annie picked up the menu while Auggie slid the menu at his place to the left of his place setting.

Jan watched the couple with curiosity … how as Auggie started to take his seat, Annie looked up at him smiling and whispered, "Thank you." How Auggie casually said, "You're welcome." They acted so normal, Jan observed.

Reading over the menu, Annie said, "It all looks so good Auggie, are you in the mood for a salad, soup or sandwich or a combo of something?"

"The last time we were here you raved about the Greek salad. I think that sounds good," he replied.

"We're having a big dinner again tonight," Annie said. "Greek salad it is for me, too."

When the waitress returned, Annie placed her order, but when the waitress said, "Sir." Auggie wasn't sure who she was talking to until Annie nudged his knee with hers. He tried to not to smile too much as their inside joke as he placed his order.

Not wanting the entire lunch to focus on him, after their orders were placed, Auggie asked Bob about his law practice in San Francisco. Bob explained how he worked in a large firm, specialized in corporate and bank law, and had made junior partner.

Auggie took a sip of his tea and mused, "Sounds like you're doing really well, Bob. Jan, are you from the San Francisco area, or are you a transplant, too?"

Jan was surprised at how easy it was to talk to Auggie. "Oh, I'm a native San Franciscan. Bob and I met at a Habitat for Humanity build that my father's company was sponsoring."

Auggie smiled. "Habitat for Humanity? Bob, you've become a man of community service as well as a barrister," he teased.

"That's right. Habitat is one of Jan's family's chosen charities. I guess we may never have met had I not been assigned to do some legal work for her father's company when I first went to work."

Auggie nodded and asked Jan what else she enjoyed. Annie glanced from Auggie to Jan to Bob and merely smiled and sipped her tea. Auggie was running an op on them diverting the attention from himself. He was so adept at his spy craft; they never realized what had happened.

Jan explained how she'd studied literature and creative writing at Stanford and had worked numerous freelance gigs; but since they'd had their son six years ago, she did less writing and more carpooling.

Their lunches were served, and the foursome became quiet at they started to eat. Annie leaned over and whispered what kind of ingredients were in the salad and ended with, "I think they use olives with the pits still in them, so be careful. We don't have time to make a pit stop at a dentist."

Auggie laughed. "Really. That's like the worst play on words ever … ever, Walker."

Annie smiled trying to pretend she'd actually intended to say that.

Through lunch, Auggie continued to ask Bob and Jan questions about their lives on the West Coast. Finally, as they were nearly finished their meals, Bob said, "Well, that's enough about us. What is it that you two do in Washington?"

They had decided to go with the Annie works at the Smithsonian and Auggie works with the computers at the Pentagon. They were introduced by a mutual friend at Allen's Tavern. Auggie made his job at the Pentagon sound important but slightly boring, after he'd described the adaptive technology that allowed him to be as proficient with computers as he was before his accident. "I just can't see the screen, so if something includes video, I have to rely on a member of my team to describe it to me." Everything he told the Hendersons was one hundred percent the truth, except it all happened at Langley and not the Pentagon.

As the lunch drew to a conclusion, Annie described how she'd had wonderful opportunities to travel all over the world for the Smithsonian. She talked more about where she'd traveled and conveniently left out the details of what she did while she was there.

After an hour and forty-five minutes, Auggie put his hands in his lap. Annie noticed the move and did the same thing, in case he reached for her, which he did. They grasped each other's hand, and Auggie gave her two gentle squeezes.

Annie finished her last fill up of tea and let it slurp in the straw for Auggie's benefit. Auggie raised his arms slightly so that Bob and Jan could see him open the face of his watch to check the time. "Annie, it's after two fifteen. Don't we need to pick up some things for Mom for her dinner tonight?"

The waitress returned to the table to refresh their ice teas. Auggie requested the check for the table over Bob's protest. "This lunch was my idea, Auggie," Bob said, "I should pick up the tab."

"Don't argue with me today, Bob," Auggie said, "and I will let you buy the next time." The waitress returned with the bill and laid it on the table telling Auggie where it was. Auggie slipped it to Annie, who whispered the total … seventy-eight dollars and change. Auggie quickly calculated the tip in his head and decided to give the waitress ninety-five dollars for the good service and for taking twice the usual amount of time to eat. He pulled folded bills from his wallet, counting the twenties, ten and five. He laid the currency on the table with the bill.

When the waitress returned, she picked up the payment and asked, "Change, Sir?"

Auggie turned his head to her and smiled. "No change."

Annie pulled out her cell phone to check the time. "Oh, goodness, yes. Where has the time gone?" she asked sincerely. Auggie got up first so that he could help Annie with her chair. When they both were standing, they shook hands with the Hendersons and Auggie said, "Bob, we'll have to do this again the next time were in town at the same time."

"Yes, Auggie, I enjoyed it," Bob said.

As they visited the last few seconds, Annie slipped her hand inside Auggie's until he slid it up her arm and gave her elbow a little squeeze indicating it was time for them to make their escape. "Well then, until next time," Annie said smiling her best dimpled smile.

Leaving the table area of the restaurant Auggie whispered with a little chuckle in his voice, "Walk quickly, but don't look back."

Annie kept up her pace through the tables, but when they walked through the lobby, she slowed just a bit to look up and tell him, "August, you are incorrigible."

"Not denying it. Now, to make honest people of us," he said as he pulled his phone from his pocket, "I'm calling home to see if there's anything Mom really does need for dinner."

* * *

><p>In the next chapter we'll join our favorite spy couple as they have a casual Saturday night dinner with Auggie's family and then take off on Sunday for their mission in St. Louis. Again, thanks for reading.<p> 


	13. Chapter 13 Leaving on a Mission

Well, a lot happens in this chapter. We find out Auggie's feelings about buffets and our spy duo hits the road for St. Louis and the first operation of the mission. It's a lot, I know, but I did not want to interrupt the story's flow by breaking it into shorter chapters.

I do this for fun only, so I have no association with Covert Affairs … but I do love those guys!

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Chapter 13 - Leaving on a Mission<strong>

The Anderson family gathered Saturday evening for a dinner of turkey tetrazzini that had become a holiday tradition. It was a casual affair that gave the grandchildren and their parents the opportunity to see the house decorated before Amanda hosted her usual holiday parties for friends and business associates. Auggie hadn't been around for one of these parties since he was in college. After he was recruited by the Agency and went to work, he'd fly home for Thanksgiving dinner and hop back on a plane to D.C. Then, after he was injured, there were several years he stayed in Washington for the holidays, much to his mother's dismay.

Auggie was surprised at how much he was looking forward to spending an informal evening with his brothers and their families. Although a house full of Andersons was loud and sometimes chaotic, he no longer was overwhelmed by it … merely unnerved by knowing that his sisters-in-law couldn't help but study his every movement.

Annie and Auggie had made a quick trip upstairs to freshen up after lunch and before they checked in with Amanda to see if she needed help with preparations. When they came back downstairs, they heard Mildred's voice in the kitchen. Auggie stepped into the breakfast area and held his arms open for a hug from his mother's long-time housekeeper.

Mildred looked up at him and laughed. "You still so stuck on yourself that you think I'm gonna want to give you a hug, huh," she said as she walked toward him and wrapped her ample arms around him. Auggie hugged her back and patted her on the back.

"You just couldn't stay away from Chez Anderson when you heard I was going to be here, could you?" he teased. "Seriously, Mildred, I was disappointed when I heard you were away for Thanksgiving and couldn't join us."

"Thank you, Auggie. I went to my daughter's early in the week, but came home yesterday. I called Amanda this morning to offer my help tonight."

Annie stepped into the kitchen and asked what she could do to help. Amanda told her and Auggie to join the rest of the family. "We're just having a casual buffet, and, as you can see, we're almost ready," Amanda responded.

Leaving the kitchen, Auggie leaned over to Annie and whispered sarcastically, "Oh, great … a buffet."

"What's the problem?" Annie asked. "We'll go through together. It's just salad, pasta and fresh bread."

Auggie scrunched his face, "Oh … well … if you don't see a problem."

"Silverware is on the dining room table. All we have to do is fill our plates and go to the dining room," Annie said. "And what's the deal with you? It's just your family."

Auggie's thinking expression spread over his face. His cheeks puffed slightly and he blew out the puff of air. "Family IS the problem. In a crowd of strangers, I'm just be the blind guy. We'd get a few curious glances at a wedding buffet … or whatever … and then we'd be ignored. My family … my brothers and especially their wives are going to scrutinize our every move …you don't share it with me, but I know they do."

Annie smiled but didn't respond immediately. She only made a noncommittal "Mmmm" sound.

Annie realized that in all the time she'd known Auggie and all the places they'd been, the only time they'd been around anything that resembled a buffet was a cheese cube, cracker and fruit punch reception at an award or retirement reception at the office. Annie would hand Auggie a small paper plate, tell him what the food choices were, he'd tell her what he wanted, she'd put it on his plate, they'd have a snack. End of story.

Before they joined the others in the family room, Annie stopped in the hall and turned to Auggie. "This isn't much different than those little receptions at the office. Just more food. Right?

Auggie shrugged. "I guess you're right. But, I just get tired of my sisters-in-law studying my every move. I can feel their stares and, frankly, having family stare at you like that is unnerving."

"Well, when they stare at you, they're staring at me, too. Do you want me to make a face at them?" she teased. "Auggie, you do things every day to keep the world safe, and I'm not going to allow a silly buffet to ruin your evening."

Auggie didn't smile. That concerned Annie. She had trouble understanding why the person who was always confident in his decisions on national security or her safety was having trouble getting his head around a family buffet.

Cynthia and Aaron were chatting with T.R. and Holly when they walked into the family room. After being warmly greeted, Auggie excused himself from the discussion about Christmas shopping, and made his way to the bar to get a couple of beers. He returned to where he'd left Annie following the sound of her voice and laughter.

"Annie?"

"Yes, Auggie."

"I hope you want one of these, because I don't want to be a two-fisted drinker tonight."

Annie laughed. "Sure," she said, reaching for the napkin wrapped bottle. "I'll be happy to help you out." Annie let her fingers touch Auggie's hand as she took the bottle, letting him know exactly where she was standing. They both smiled and rejoined the conversation.

Amanda came into the room to announce that dinner was ready. Auggie drained his beer and sat it on the table near where he had been standing. Annie did the same and draped her arms around his left arm. "Are you ready for dinner?" she whispered.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Sorry, Soldier Boy," Annie whispered, "I don't understand your apprehension and the dynamic here. It's just an informal family dinner."

The dishes were arranged on the island in the kitchen, and the family lined up to fill their plates on their way into the dining room. When Annie approached the island, she picked up two plates and handed one to Auggie. "I suppose you want salad and tetrazzini on the same plate … that's what I'm going to do," Annie said softly.

"That'll work," Auggie whispered.

"One or two slices of bread," Annie asked as she filled their plates.

"Two … now that I smell the food, I'm hungry.

"Italian or ranch dressing?" Annie asked as they walked around the island.

"Italian … not very much," Auggie instructed quietly.

They moved to the dining room and set their plates on the place mats that marked the table settings. Auggie started to pull the chair out for Annie, but she excused herself to get their drinks from the sideboard. When she returned, Auggie helped her get settled in. Annie picked up her fork and glanced around the table only to realize that Auggie was right. Several members of the family had been watching closely as they filled their plates and made their way to the dining room. She smiled at them creating a small awkward moment before the others picked up their forks and began eating their dinner.

Amanda joined the family in the dining room. As she sat down, she commented on how quiet everyone was. Everyone kept eating.

Annie smiled at Amanda and raised her eyebrows slightly. Then she reached over to Auggie's leg and tapped out in Morse Code, "You are right."

Auggie could not stifle a smile.

* * *

><p>After Sunday morning breakfast with his parents, Annie and Auggie packed up the Escalade to head south down I-55 to St. Louis. The goodbyes were warm and casual, because they would return to Glencoe before going back to Washington. While Annie and Auggie were standing in front of her, Amanda took each of their hands. "I know this is a working trip. Be careful." She then kissed each of them on the cheek.<p>

Annie looked at the sidewalk and whispered, "We'll be as careful as we can be."

"I know," Amanda said. "Give me a heads up when you're on your way back."

"OK," they said in unison.

Backing out of the driveway, Annie noticed the Northwestern duffle in the back seat. "What's with the Northwestern duffle?" she asked.

"That's our equipment for the trip," Auggie said. "It was either the Northwestern bag or an Army one. I thought the college one would draw less attention when we check into the hotel."

"I never asked," Annie mused. "Where did you make our hotel reservations."

Auggie smiled his most devilish smile. "The Ritz Carlton. Why?"

"Did you forget I'm driving here. It might be nice to know where I'm headed once we get into the area."

"Well, now you know," Auggie said as he fiddled with the radio trying to find some music. "When we get closer, we can google the address and you can plug it into the GPS."

"OK, but I think I remember how to get to it."

"You've been to St. Louis?" Auggie asked.

"Yes. My mom's sister and her family lived in Webster Groves, one of the suburbs. Mom and Aunt Martha would take Danni and me to the Ritz for lunch or, sometimes, tea." Annie giggled, "I think Mom was trying to civilize us."

Auggie laughed. "She did a very good job … especially on your sister."

"Watch it, buddy. You'd best not be insulting your driver. It's a long walk to either St. Louis or Glencoe from this point," she threatened teasingly. Driving into Springfield, Ill., Annie said she was ready to take a break and get a cup of coffee, so she pulled off the highway and into the first McDonald's she could find.

They bypassed the drive-thru, parked the car and went inside to use the facilities and order fresh coffee. About a half an hour out of Springfield, Annie realized that Auggie was remarkably quiet. He fiddled with his folded cane, and seemed to be lost in thought. She didn't intrude on his thoughts for another twenty or thirty miles, but finally decided to comment. "Auggie, where are you in your thoughts?"

"Hmmm, I'm sorry … I guess I did go kinda quiet there, didn't I?"

"Yes you did. You're always so good about talking to me to keep me awake when we're driving."

Reaching for Annie's shoulder, Auggie apologized, "I'm sorry … I was just thinking about the past few days and reminding myself about how much I have to be thankful for."

Auggie squeezed Annie's shoulder and she reached up with her right hand to cover his. "I know. We do have a lot to be thankful for. And … I think one of the things you're most thankful for today is that you're out of the DPD on an actual mission."

"You got me," Auggie said, "but I'm serious. Contrary to what some people may think about me, I do have so much to be thankful for … a great job where my knowledge and expertise are valued … that my injuries weren't any worse … a supportive family, even though they don't always understand me … and most important … you, Annie Walker."

Annie returned her hand to the steering wheel and stole a side-long glance at Auggie. "Injuries weren't worse?" Annie questioned.

"Yeah," Auggie sighed. "Although I lost my sight, I recovered from the concussion. I can think clearly. I can walk and talk and I have the use of my hands, so I can read Braille." Then, he was quiet again.

Annie wanted to say something reassuring, but she suspected he was thinking about the young men in his unit who he wasn't able to save. As their relationship had deepened, she recognized when she needed to step back and leave Auggie alone with his thoughts.

* * *

><p>Driving toward the city, Annie saw the Gateway Arch peeking over the horizon. "We're almost there, Auggie, I can see the Arch coming into view. It looks like our mission is about to go live."<p>

Auggie shifted in his seat. "We forgot to check on the hotel address when we stopped," he said.

"That's OK. It's early and I think we have time to make a quick stop downtown before we check in and get organized for tonight."

"Where do you want to stop?" Auggie asked. His voice had a professional, no-nonsense authoritative tone.

"I haven't seen the new baseball stadium, since it opened. I just want to see the Stan Musial statue. You OK with that? It'll only take a few minutes."

"Sure, if you want to," Auggie said. "The new stadium is really nice … it just doesn't have the personality of Wrigley Field."

"You've been there?" Annie asked.

"Of course," Auggie smiled. "It opened in 2006 and my brothers and I made a weekend of it and came down for the Cards-Cubs game. I sort of remember what it looks like. They built it so there's a nice view of the city and the Arch. You know … that weekend was the last Cubs baseball game I ever saw."

Annie pulled off the interstate and wound her way through the maze of downtown one-way streets to get to the stadium. Driving around the structure, she spotted the Musial statue and found a parking space. "You want to stay here or come with me?"

"Going with, of course … I don't want to run the risk of missing something," Auggie chuckled.

Annie smiled at him as the got out of the vehicle. He had worked through his darker thoughts and was back with her. A few other sightseers were milling around the stadium entrance and the statue. Annie and Auggie crossed the street and Annie headed straight for the statue and slowly circled and admired it.

Annie observed an older couple standing back admiring the statue and reminiscing about seeing "Stan the Man" play. She pulled out her phone and approached the couple. "Would you mind snapping our photo. My dad was a great fan, and I want to send it to him?"

The woman reached for the phone while saying, "Certainly … just show me what to do."

Annie went back to Auggie and whispered to him to turn to the right slightly so he would be facing the camera. The woman said, "Ready … smile …" She snapped the photo and said, "Just to be sure, let me take another one."

Annie thanked her and slipped the phone back into her coat pocket.

"Annie, you just handed over an encrypted CIA phone to a complete stranger," Auggie admonished in a whisper.

"I could tell they were nice, honest people, and I wanted a picture of us here," Annie said. "Let's head to the hotel."

Auggie knew he was defeated on the topic, but still said, "Annie," in his exasperated tone.

She smiled at him. "OK. Won't do it again."

Annie pulled out of the parking space and made her way to 40 West, which she remembered as the easiest way to the hotel from downtown. About 20 minutes later, she drove toward the Ritz entrance. "Do we want to do valet or self-parking?" she asked.

"Park it ourselves. I don't like the idea of giving up the keys and control over where we park," Auggie said.

"Self-park it is," Annie said as she veered to the left away from the main entrance and pulled into the parking garage behind the building. She drove up a couple of levels and parked near a door that looked like they would not need a key card to gain entrance. "Let's go find the lobby," Annie said.

They got out of the car and Auggie unfolded his cane, which he rarely did anymore when Annie was with him. "What's with that?" she asked.

Auggie lifted up the cane. "This. Well, yes. I need to concentrate of the layout of the hotel rather than rely on you. Let's just walk together and would you mind describing the layout beyond the five feet of the stick?"

"Gotcha," Annie said. "Well, the parking garage is pretty standard … a row of cars on either side of us, and we're parked facing the building seven spaces down from the door to the hotel's second level." She started walking toward the door and Auggie followed staying about a step behind her. "One more parking space, and the entrance is on our left."

Annie opened the door. "It swings to the right," she said. Auggie reached out and caught the door to hold it for Annie. "Thank you, Sir," she smiled.

"You're welcome."

They took a couple of steps into the hotel's second level. Annie described the wide hallways ahead and to the left and right. A wide curving staircase was to the right and the elevators were to the left. "Do you want to go to the lobby by the stairs or elevator?"

"Elevator first," Auggie said, "and we can come up the stairs."

Auggie followed Annie to the bank of elevators. "There are four elevators; and from the size of the doors it looks like they are large." Since no one was in the hallway, she took Auggie's left hand and showed him where the call buttons were located. He felt the buttons to gauge their height on the wall and then pressed down.

The doors opened on the main level to a much busier area. "Lots of people, hardwood floors, more narrow hallway," Annie whispered as they stepped out of the elevator. "If you're not going to take my arm, stay close. The registration desk is to the left."

When the guests noticed Auggie's white cane, they stepped aside to give him room to maneuver. Annie described the lobby bar area on the right and the rich furnishings throughout the area. "Annie, stop," Auggie said.

"Something wrong?"

"Almost … I forgot to tell you I made the reservations under one of your aliases … Laurie Ann Bertran. You have your Bertran credit card with you, don't you?"

"I keep it and the corresponding driver's license in a zippered compartment in my wallet. So we're cool."

Auggie let out a sigh of relief. "I can't believe I almost made such a rookie mistake," he said.

As they stood in line at the registration desk, Annie told Auggie there were three desk clerks on duty and the concierge desk was to their left. When it was their turn, Annie stepped up to the desk and laid her Bertran credit card and id on the marble counter and said, "We have a reservation for two under my name, Laurie Ann Bertran."

"Yes, Mrs. Bertran. You have a double with a king bed for two nights. Is that correct?"

"Yes, that's us," Annie replied. "And we have self-parked."

"Very well," the clerk said. "Here are two key cards, and your room number is on the inside of the cover."

Annie took the cards and handed one to Auggie. "Thank you," she said as she brushed her right hand against Auggie's left. He took her arm this time sensing Annie was concerned about the number of people in the lobby area. They went back to the elevators to retrieve their luggage from the car. When the elevator door closed and they were alone in it, Annie told him they were in Room 628.

They could manage their two roller bags, Auggie's messenger bag and the duffle bag in one trip, and their ride up to the sixth floor also was alone. Auggie resumed using the cane without Annie's sighted guide. Annie opened the door to their room and said, "Wow, this is nicer than most of the room's I've gotten to stay in lately."

Auggie smiled. "That's why I wanted to stay here. We make you fly all over the world coach. The least I could do was to get you … us a nice room on this trip. Especially since we've ended up working on our vacation. Now, how's the place laid out?"

"Let me pull our cases in an out of the way," Annie said. "Take three steps in so I can close the door, and I'll describe it."

Auggie complied with her request. She rolled the cases into the room and returned to take the duffle bag off his shoulder and place it on the foot of the bed.

"OK, it's laid out like a lot of hotel rooms, except it's larger and prettier. The bathroom door is at your right. It's open. When you stand in the door, the counter and sink are straight ahead. The toilet is behind the door on the left, and the tub with the shower is on the right. There's a stand just to the right of the main door with towels and little bottles of shampoo and shower gel."

Annie backed out of the bathroom so Auggie could explore the room and the placement of its fixtures. Auggie went around the room twice. Stopped. Then turning toward where he heard Annie breathing said, "Ok, I've got it."

Annie took a few steps down the room's entrance saying the closet was the next door on the right wall and then the little hall opened into the room. "Our king bed is on the right. Beyond that is a loveseat with a coffee table. There's an easy chair in the corner to the right. On the left is the luggage rack, the dresser with a large flat screen TV, an open area and then in the left corner is a desk facing us. The sliding door to the balcony is behind the desk. Do you want a guided tour, or do you want to explore on your own?"

"I think I'll do my own exploring, if you don't mind," he said.

"Not at all … less work for me," Annie teased.

As Auggie made his way around the room, Annie checked out the bed and discovered it not only had a down comforter, but a feather bed over the mattress. She stood at the foot of the bed and allowed herself to fall into the bed face first with her arms spread out. Auggie was checking out where things were placed on the desk when he heard the thump, whoosh and Annie's "OOoohh."

"Annie, are you ok."

"Never better," came her muffled answer. "Just testing out the feather bed and comforter."

Auggie's hand trailed around the edge of the desk and he walked forward until his cane made contact with the dresser, which he explored and picked up the remote control to hand to Annie. He returned to the area where the bed sat. "Annie, I would join you, but I'm not sure where you are," he teased.

"I didn't realize I was tired until 90 seconds ago," she said rolling over. 'I am now on what is my side of the bed," she said looking up at Auggie who was standing at the foot of the bed. He reached down and touched the side of her leg. After giving it a little pat, Auggie stepped over to the right and felt the softness on the bed. He started to go around to sit on the bed to stretch out for a few minutes.

"No, not that way," Annie laughed. "Put your cane down." Auggie folded the cane and laid it on the dresser behind him and stepped back to the foot of the bed. "Now, take one more step to the right, hold your arms up to your sides and fall into the bed face first."

"Annie, I'm not sure about this."

"You know I'm not going to tell you to do something that'll hurt you, don't you?"

"Well … yes," he answered.

"Then, go for it," she challenged him.

He felt for the height of the bed one more time and allowed himself to fall into the down comforter with a whoosh and a thud. They both laughed. "You're right. That was incredible," he said rolling over to face Annie. He reached out and touched her cheek. After scooting closer together, they kissed gently before Auggie reminded her they needed to do an equipment check and get organized for the mission.

Auggie sat on the side of the bed for a few seconds reconstructing the room's layout in his mind. He stood up and confidently walked back to the desk where he had moved the duffle with their surveillance equipment. Annie dug her cosmetic case out of her bag and went into the bathroom to freshen up and brush her teeth. When she came back into the room, Auggie asked her to come to the desk.

Auggie pulled each piece of equipment out of the bag. The bugs that Annie needed to sew into suspect's clothing were in a small plastic box with a Braille label. Auggie handed her the box, explaining what they were along with a sewing kit of pre-threaded needles and a tiny pair of scissors. He told her to sew the listening devices under the belt loops of the man's trousers and into the lining of his jacket.

"Guess I should have paid more attention to sewing class when I was in high school," Annie joked.

"You took sewing?" Auggie asked sarcastically.

"It was either that or spend time in study hall getting in trouble for talking, so I took sewing. Wasn't that interested in it," she explained.

He handed her another tiny plastic box that contained a miniaturized ear piece so they could communicate when she was inside the cleaners. Next, Auggie hooked up the swiveling web cam and connected with the team back at Langley. When they had established contact, Auggie moved the camera around to get a handle on operating it. He put it on Annie who smiled and waved to her friends in the office. The tech crew instructed him to move the camera around the room and up and down to see its furnishings.

When they'd determined that the camera was working and Auggie was operating it properly, one member of the team commented, "Geez, that's a nice room. What'd you guys do? Check into the Ritz."

"That, my friend, is need to know," Auggie said. "We'll check in with you about ten o'clock tonight."

He unhooked the camera and turned off the laptop. Annie giggled at his response.

"Hey, I'm hungry. Do you want room service, or should we go downstairs to the dining room?" Annie asked.

"Let's call down to the dining room and see if we can get a six o'clock reservation. You can people watch and I can people listen."

"Auggeee," Annie squealed in mock indignation as she flipped through the portfolio looking for the dining room extension. "Here it is. Dial 60 for the dining room."

Auggie picked up the phone receiver and dialed the number. He told the dining room he was James Bertrand in Room 628 and would like a reservation at six. When he hung up the receiver, he said, "Done."

They relaxed and caught up on the news until time to eat. Annie brushed her hair and refreshed her lipstick. Auggie splashed water on his face and ran his fingers through his hair. "You going for the tousled look?" Annie teased as she reached up and rearranged the hair around his face.

When they left the room, Auggie unfolded his cane and led the way out of the room and back to the elevator area. As they stepped into the alcove, Annie said quietly, "We're alone," upon which Auggie located the elevator door with his cane and then pressed the call button.

Auggie smiled at Annie and said, "I may need a little guidance on which elevator door opens."

Annie stepped to his side and wrapped her arms around his left arm as another couple entered the alcove. The elevator to their right opened and the other couple hesitated so that Annie and Auggie could enter first. Annie and the other woman smiled at each other as Annie pushed the Lobby button. When they exited the elevator, Annie released Auggie's arm and they walked toward the entrance. "We're going to turn left and cross through the main foyer area to the restaurant entrance. It's kind of crowded," Annie said as she touched his left hand with her fingertips.

Auggie continued to use his cane through the crowd, but took her arm to avoid making a misstep and drawing attention to himself. The restaurant entrance area was clear and the hostess greeted them as they walked toward her desk.

After their dinner and a discussion about what kind of Christmas presents to buy for their families … they headed back to their room to find the cleaner and get the bugs planted. They both slipped into black jeans and black sweaters. Annie caught a glimpse of them in the mirror and chuckled lightly.

"Something funny?" Auggie asked.

"Yeah, we look like a couple of cat burglars."

"Be glad we're not on a Special Forces mission. We'd have to black out the skin on our faces."

They put on their dark jackets, and Auggie picked up the duffle. "Do you have your tracking devices and sewing kit," Auggie asked.

Annie reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out the two small plastic boxes. "I have everything you gave me."

"Let's hit the road," Auggie said enthusiastically.

"You love this, don't you?"

"I can't help it," Auggie said. "I love being able to contribute out in the field."

They drove south and east through the city's streets to the Shaw Neighborhood where the cleaner was located. The GPS misdirected them onto a street that no longer was a through street, but Annie maneuvered out to one of the main streets in the area and they found the cleaner nestled in with several businesses on a neighborhood corner. Annie parked the car several doors down from the business. They were lucky it was a cloudy evening with no moonlight and the old fashioned street lights didn't put out a lot of light. The neighborhood also was quiet with no one on the street.

Auggie reached down on the floor under his feet and pulled out the laptop and night vision web cam. He hooked up the camera and started communicating with Langley. Auggie reminded Annie that even though the other agent had reported the business did not have an alarm system he wanted her to check as she entered the back door. "You know what to look for. Just don't rely on another agent's information and feel too secure. Check it out for yourself." Auggie instructed.

Annie shoved the earpiece into her ear and quietly opened the car door. "Here I go," she said testing the earpiece. As she slipped between the buildings, she whispered, "Can everyone hear me?"

She received affirmative responses from both Auggie and the crew back in Langley. The back of the business had a back door with a window and two windows on the left side. Annie surveyed the windows and did not find any security connections. Looking in the back door window, she didn't see any evidence of an alarm. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the leather sheath that protected her lock picking tools.

Annie manipulated the lock in the door knob and when it popped, she slowly opened the door. She stood in the darkness and slowly scanned the back room of the business for any tell-tale blinking lights that would indicate a silent alarm. "Looks like our intel was right. Doesn't seem to be an alarm," Annie whispered.

"Good," Auggie said, "but let's not get a false sense of security. Find the guys clothes so we can get out of here."

"Yes, sir," Annie said.

Annie pulled out the claim number the St. Louis officer had sent back to the DPD. He had followed the suspect to the shop, so the two pairs of slacks and jacket with the number or numbers preceding it were her target. Auggie sat in the SUV scanning the street, sidewalk and front of the business with the camera. The tech crew was watching the monitors closely and giving Auggie instructions on where to move the camera. "Stop," one of them yelled.

Auggie gasped. "What?"

"Keep the camera still. I see something in the window," a voice came through to Auggie and Annie.

Annie looked up and realized they probably were picking up the pin point of light from her small flashlight. "It's my flashlight, guys. I just found the slacks and jacket. I'll sit on the floor behind the counter to install the devices."

"Ok, that explains it," a voice from Langley said in a relieved tone.

"Now that my heart is beating again," Auggie said, "don't dawdle in there, Annie."

"I'm sewing as fast as I can," she answered. "I'm almost finished. There," she said as she placed the slacks and jacket on hangers and hung them back on the rack.

Auggie heard a car pull up to the curb in front of him and stop. He moved the camera to face straight ahead, but the view was blocked by the vehicle directly in front of the SUV. With guidance from the Langley crew, he refocused on the front door. A man walked up to the door and started to unlock it when he was interrupted by a woman walking her dog."

"Annie?" Auggie whispered urgently. "You have got to be on your way out of there. It looks like the owner is getting ready to unlock the front door, they tell me."

"I'm at the back door now," Annie reported as she closed the door quietly and tugged on it to be sure it was locked. She felt her pocket to be sure she had her flashlight and sewing kit. She took a few steps away from the door and realized that the area was flooded with light from inside the business. "Be patient, Auggie. I'll be back as quick as I can. I need to go down to the ally and circle around using the sidewalk. When they turned on the lights, I could be detected walking between the buildings."

"Roger that," Auggie said. "Stay aware and stay frosty. I'll be waiting for you."

"Thanks, Aug," Annie said.

When she stepped onto the sidewalk of the side street, Annie stopped to gather herself. She took a deep breath and shoved her hands in her jacket pockets and started walking like she was out for a late night stroll. She rounded the corner and caught sight of the SUV. She quickened her step and hurried to the car. A few feet from the car, she used the remote to open the door.

"Hey, Auggie," she said as she climbed behind the wheel.

"Hey, yourself," Auggie replied. Then to the office he said, "Clover is back from the field."

As they drove back to the hotel, Auggie disassembled the camera from the laptop and stowed everything back in the duffle. "Well," he said, "you did a fine job on the first leg of the mission tonight, Annie. I hope we get a payoff in learning more about what this guy is up to."

"I couldn't have done it alone," Annie said as she reached over to squeeze Auggie's shoulder.

Auggie's phone rang as Annie turned into the hotel parking garage. "Anderson," Auggie answered.

"Well, I hear Annie planted the bugs without too much excitement," Joan said.

Auggie chuckled. "Everything was textbook until the shop owner showed up. But, Annie was going out the back door as he was turning on the lights in the front. But that's the way Annie does things."

Auggie could hear the smile in Joan's voice, as she discussed how they should stake out the cleaners in the morning to see who picks up the clothes Annie tagged. "Ok, we'll be there," Auggie said.

"We'll be where?" Annie asked.

"Back at the cleaners, so you can get a visual on our suspect when he picks up his clean clothes," Auggie explained.

"Oh, great … a stake out. I hope he comes in early, so I can drink my morning coffee and not worry about finding a bathroom," Annie said.

"Yeah, and people think our jobs are so glamorous," Auggie said as Annie pulled into a parking spot. When they got out of the car, Auggie unfolded his cane and asked Annie where they were parked in relation to the entrance.

"Same side as before only we're ….10 … no 11 … parking spaces down from the door," Annie explained. "You go ahead, I'll get the duffle."

As she slung the strap over her shoulder, she watched Auggie confidently make his way to the door, using the back bumpers of the parked cars to guide him to the door. She picked up her pace to catch up with Auggie who was waiting to open the door for her. Annie followed Auggie to the elevators where he **located** the call button as easily as he did the ones at the office. Another couple waiting for the elevator studied Auggie closely, but Annie diffused the stares by snuggling up to him and taking his left arm in hers.

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><p>Whew! Annie and Auggie had a busy day, and I bet their Monday will turn out to be even busier. Join me for the next chapter to see how the mission begins to play out.<p> 


	14. Chapter 14 Trailing the Suspect

Annie and Auggie have the suspect under surveillance ... wonder just what might happen as they keep tabs on him? Read on to find out.

Thank you so much for your comments and alerts ... and for your concern over Chapter 13 not showing up yesterday. Evidently, there was a glich with with web site. Oh well, Chapter 13 got posted; and I'm hoping this one shows up in a timely manner. It's fun to write and to share with you. Oh ... just the usual reminder that I have no assoiation with the developers, cast or crew at Covert Affiars, except for the fact that I think those guys rock!

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><p><strong>Chapter 14 – Trailing the Suspect<strong>

The next morning Auggie and Annie dressed in layers to stay comfortable on their day of surveillance. Since they were dressed ultra-casual, they decided to find a Starbucks for coffee and breakfast rather than eat in the hotel dining room. After they'd downed their large cups of coffee, yogurt and the shared scone, they climbed back into the SUV and drove back to the cleaner.

Joan wanted a visual on the suspect to verify that the tracking devices were planted on the right person's clothing. Annie parked in the next block where she had a good view of the entrance to the business. Auggie handled communications back to Langley while Annie kept a close watch on the entrance to the business. Shortly after she saw the owner unlock the door and turn the sign from "closed" to "open," a handsome Asian man wearing sweat pants and a St. Louis University sweatshirt walked hurriedly into the shop and left a few minutes carrying what looked like the jacket and pants to which Annie had attached the tracking and listening devices.

She put down her binoculars and said, "Auggie, he's picked up the cleaning."

Auggie reached into the back seat and pulled his listening equipment onto his lap. While Auggie turned on the equipment, Annie started the car and waited to see which way he was going to turn as he approached the intersection. He turned left toward Tower Grove Park, so Annie eased around her corner to the right and followed him at about a half block distance. Auggie's equipment started picking up the noise of the car, the car radio and the plastic covering rustling. The GPS tracker was working, in case they lost sight of him.

He drove through the park to the neighborhood on the other side, and parked in front of a small, well maintained red brick house. As Annie eased past the house, the suspect carried in his cleaning. Annie circled the block and pulled into a parking place on the cross street where she had a view of the house. After about 15 minutes, Annie commented that she felt they weren't fitting in watching the house. Some of the neighbors were out walking their dogs and taking walks and were noticing the SUV.

"Mmmm." Auggie said, "that's not good. How far are we from the park you said we drove through?"

"A block and a half. Why?"

"We're both dressed causal and aren't you wearing your sneakers, too?"

"Yeah." Annie answered.

Auggie pulled out his encrypted phone and its Braille input device. He checked some settings on his laptop, made sure they were transferred to the phone, put in the phone ear buds and listened intently for a few seconds. An easy smile spread across Auggie's face. "OK, now, we're ready," he said.

"Ready for what?" Annie asked.

"We need to fit in. Let's take a walk in the park," he said as he reached down and picked up his cane.

"What about watching our guy?"

"Annie, we have his clothes bugged. If he parked on the street, we can easily put a little tracker on the car."

"We have a tracker to put on the car?"

Auggie smiled again and reached behind him for the duffle from which he pulled out a small zippered pouch. He unzipped the pouch to reveal several trackers. He handed one to Annie. She took it as he said, "We'll walk past the car, you'll drop something and when you reach down to pick it up, you can put the tracker behind the bumper."

"Sounds like a plan," Annie smiled. She stretched over the console and kissed him. "You're always a step ahead of everything. That's just one of the reasons I love you."

Auggie reached back into the duffle and pulled out a tiny webcam with a long USB cord. Annie watched with curiosity while he connected the electronics.

"Dare I ask what you're doing?"

"You may," he said and paused. "We're setting up some electronic surveillance so we can take our walk. This is a lipstick camera, and it should be small enough that it won't be too noticeable on the dash," Auggie said as he handed it to Annie. "Point it toward our guy's house, ok?"

As Annie took the small camera from Auggie, she playfully touched his fingertips causing him to grin. "Not now, Walker. We're on the clock." He turned on the laptop, logged in and made contact with his team in the Tech Center in Langley.

"Annie? … A little help please?"

"Sure … what can I do?"

"Take a peek at the screen to make sure our aim is good."

Annie looked at the computer screen and adjusted the camera to the left. She studied the screen for a second and asked if they could pull in closer. "There's a slide control on the side of the camera, if you want pull in a little tighter," Auggie instructed.

Annie fiddled with the tiny control and checked the screen. "That's better," she whispered.

Auggie sat the laptop on the floor beside his feet and tilted the screen down. After making a quick call back to Langley to be sure the signal was clear, Auggie opened his door, stepped out, unfolded his cane and asked, "Ready?"

Annie slid out of the SUV and joined Auggie on the sidewalk. As they walked, she described the neighborhood as well as discussing what restaurants they should check out for lunch and dinner … especially when there was someone else near them on the sidewalk. Auggie used his cane to guide him, and Annie walked beside him chatting with her right hand slipped into the gentle caress of his left hand.

They crossed the street and walked toward the suspect's car. Annie took off her sunglasses and held them in her left hand as she gestured while she talked. When they were almost even with the car, she slipped her hand from Auggie's and gently squeezed his wrist twice to let him know she was about to let her sunglasses fly.

Her toss was surprisingly accurate and the sunglasses landed under the car's front bumper. "Oh, good grief. I can't believe I'm such a klutz," Annie exclaimed for anyone who might be in earshot. "Wait, honey, while I get my sunglasses."

Auggie stopped and half leaned on his cane while he waited for Annie, who was down on her knees reaching under the front of the car to retrieve her sunglasses. In a fluid move, she picked up the glasses with one hand and as she steadied herself to get up, she placed the tracker under the bumper. Auggie could tell from the sounds coming from inside the house on his receiver that the suspect wasn't in a hurry to get ready for work and leave the house.

Annie and Auggie continued walking hand-in-hand to the end of the block where they turned to cross Arsenal Street and enter the park for the rest of their walk. They walked several blocks along the meandering path chatting about their Christmas shopping. To the few people they met on the path, they were thought to be a new couple who'd moved into the neighborhood. Auggie's phone chimed and he answered it, "Anderson."

"Auggie, our guy just made a phone call to his office reporting he was running late and would be leaving in a few minutes," a team member reported.

"Thanks … later."

Auggie told Annie they needed to head back to the car, because the mark was on the move. They walked quickly to the next cross walk and hurried back to the car. "Did they say exactly what he said?" Annie asked.

"Just that he was called the office to report he was running late and indicated that he is headed to the office. Since we sort of know where the office is located, we don't have to worry about following him too close," Auggie said.

"Yes, Sir." Annie said looking up into his face with a wide smile.

"What's that big smile for?" Auggie asked.

"Smile? What smile? How on earth did you know I was smiling?" Annie asked in mock indignation.

"Your voice just sounds happier when you smile. Everyone's does."

Annie gave him a little punch in the arm, and Auggie reciprocated by grabbing her by the shoulder, pulling her into his side and planting a kiss on her forehead. Annie giggled as they walked past the houses and duplexes.

"Here's the car," Annie said as she veered off the sidewalk and placed Auggie's hand on the door handle. She reached into her pocket and opened the door with the remote. "There you go," she said as she walked around the front of the car to get in.

By the time Annie had started the car, Auggie had activated his tracking and listening receiver and was whispering the information to Annie, who laughed. "This isn't funny, Walker," Auggie said in exasperation.

"Yes it is," she said. "It's just you and me in the car, and you're whispering. Are you sure this spy stuff isn't in your DNA? You are always the consummate spy."

Auggie turned toward Annie, "And you're not?"

"Not like you, Soldier Boy."

Annie wound the SUV through the streets of the south part of the city on her way to Highway 40, where she pulled into the westbound lanes to drive out to the commercial and light industrial area near the Missouri River where the development offices and laboratory were located. Since most traffic was one the eastbound lanes, they were making good time on the highway.

"Hey, Speed Demon," Auggie said, "you can slow down to at least the speed limit. Our guy just stopped at a coffee drive through."

"How do you know that?"

"Well, his tracker stopped moving; and I heard him place an order for a large coffee with skim milk. If you don't slow down, we may beat him to his office," Auggie teased.

Annie slowed down as she drove down the hill approaching research facility. "Good grief," Annie exclaimed, "this area has turned into a whole other city."

"What do you mean," Auggie asked.

"Last time I was here I was just a kid and it was the year after the flood. All that was left were a few buildings and the general aviation airport," she explained. "Are you hearing anything from our guy in your earpiece?"

Auggie shook his head. "Just his car radio and car noises. He's not too far ahead of us." A few minutes later Auggie reported the radio had been turned off and he heard a slamming car door. "Sounds like he's arrived at work."

Annie drove to the airport exit, crossed over the highway and doubled back through the street that ran through the industrial buildings. She spotted the suspect's car and kept driving to the next building's parking lot and found a spot to park where she could watch his car.

Auggie put his head back on the headrest to concentrate on the conversations he was hearing. Annie watched the people coming and going in the parking lot. Nothing seemed extraordinary or out of place. She glanced over at Auggie who was playing with a rubber band while he continued to monitor the conversations from inside the building.

Annie reached over and put her hand on Auggie's knee. He smiled and patted her hand, but then held up his hand to let her know he was listening to a conversation. Auggie was hearing a conversation between the suspect and his boss discussing a meeting they were having that afternoon in the office with one of the scientists who was working on the night vision project.

"It looks like nothing much is going to happen today, because they're planning meetings the rest of the afternoon," Auggie commented.

Annie thought a moment before she spoke, "So …. Do you think we could take a break and get a bite of lunch?"she asked.

"I think we can manage that," Auggie answered. "Do you have a place in mind?"

"I do, and I'm getting hungry. How about you?"

"Let me talk to the crew back at the Tech Center, so they are paying attention while we take a break."

Annie pulled out of the industrial park back on the highway and headed east where she would weave her way through West St. Louis County to the Trainwreck Saloon. She pulled into the parking lot of the bar and eatery telling Auggie he was about to experience the most awesome onion rings in the Midwest. Walking through the parking lot, they talked about how much of what they do involves waiting and listening.

"I'm not asking for something dangerous to happen," Annie said, "I just want …uh … there's a couple of steps … this mission under our belts so we can get back to D.C."

Walking across the wood floored porch of the Saloon, Auggie said, "I understand, Annie, but I gotta admit I'm having six kinds of fun being able to be out in the field."

"That makes two of us," Annie answered as she opened the door. They walked through the bar to a table in the restaurant area in the back. A waitress told them to take any open table. Annie whispered, "There's a two top against the wall to our right. That OK?"

"Sure."

Auggie pulled Annie's chair out for her and trailing his hand along the side of the table, seated himself. When the waitress returned with menus, Annie asked if she had a Braille menu. Flustered by the request, she apologized that they did not. Annie thanked her and took a menu from her.

"You didn't need to do that," Auggie said.

"Yes, I did," Annie replied sharply. "Restaurants need to be reminded they should provide Braille menus. What are you hungry for?"

"You mentioned something about onion rings … and I think a burger would go nicely with them," Auggie answered. He leaned across the table and whispered to Annie, "There doesn't seem to be too many people here, are there?"

"No … one other couple in the corner and a couple of guys having burgers and beer at the bar up front. It's late for lunch. Why?"

"After we order, will you show me where the men's room is?" he grinned. "I ... uhh … need to wash my hands."

"Sure," Annie said. "You'll be OK in an unfamiliar men's room? Geez, we always go places where you're familiar. Maybe this wasn't a good idea."

Auggie held up his folded cane. "I'll be fine," Auggie assured her.

* * *

><p>After they'd enjoyed their lunch and checked in with Langley, Annie drove back to the industrial area where they'd left their suspect. Annie circled the parking lot, spotted his car and pulled into a space in the adjoining parking area. Auggie put ear buds in his ears and plugged them into a receiver that he switched on. He turned to Annie and asked her to call their crew at Langley to give them their 20.<p>

She checked in, chatted with the tech for a few seconds and ended the call. Then they waited … and waited. Annie watching. Auggie listening. More than an hour passed and Annie reached into the floor of the back seat to retrieve her iPod out of her bag. Auggie listened to the sounds of her digging in her almost-too-big bag and teasingly asked if she had a small animal stashed in the bag.

"Silly … I'm just digging out my tunes … to help keep me awake. We spend more than half of our time watching and waiting for someone to do something," she sighed. "Our lives aren't nearly as interesting as the spies in the movies and books."

Auggie reached over and squeezed her shoulder, "Yes, but what we do actually can make a difference in the country's security. And as lofty as it sounds, it's not always exciting … you know that."

Auggie put his hand up as a signal to Annie to be quiet so he could listen. He then shook his head. "They were all saying 'goodnight,' and nothing sounded out of the ordinary," Auggie reported. "Sorry I had to give you a silent shhhh."

"Not a problem … here he comes across the parking lot heading toward his car. He's looking at his cell phone, but I can't tell if he's making or taking a call."

Auggie held up his hand again, then put his finger over the receiver in his ear to make sure he could hear. The suspect had taken a call from a buddy who was inviting him to meet him for a beer after work at what sounded like a tavern in his neighborhood.

"Annie, google up Tower Grove Tavern to see it it's in our guy's neighborhood. He's going to meet someone there after work."

Annie pulled out her phone and searched for the tavern. "You're right. It's two blocks north and one block west of his house. You feelin' like a beer after work?" she asked.

"Yes, but we'd be too conspicuous in a neighborhood place," Auggie said.

"Aw, come on, Aug. Let's go play with the natives."

Auggie shook his head as Annie started the car. "An officer's job is to blend in, and I'm pretty sure a blind guy and a smokin' hot blonde would stand out in a local hang out."

Annie glanced at Auggie a couple of times while she negotiated her way out of the parking lot. He sat facing straight ahead with a stoic expression, pretending to be listening for more conversation. "Auggie, we can pull it off. We're both wearing casual clothes. We can drive around to find a for rent or for sale sign and if anyone says anything we'll tell them we're moving to the city and are checking out the area."

"I understand," Auggie said, "but I'm not sure it's a good idea."

"Well, if you're worried about the blind thing and being noticed, we'll put your cane in my tote bag and you can put your arm around my shoulders … we're always walking that way. It won't be any different."

Auggie began to smile. Annie felt like she was breaking him down. "No, we're not going to do anything that could show our hand, Annie. Our guy has been with the Company for several years; and even though I still have my covert status, I'm known all over the agency. He could make me and I'd be jeopardizing the mission of finding out who he's selling secrets to."

"I thought when you began to smile that I'd convinced you," Annie pouted.

"I was smiling because you were working the problem so well. And … I would do it, if it were necessary. But we need to stay under the radar. OK?"

"Understood. But, we can pull it off. I know we can." Annie said.

"I appreciate your confidence in my abilities." Auggie said as he patted her shoulder.

* * *

><p>Annie drove back to the suspect's neighborhood and found his car parked in front of his house. While inside his home, Auggie heard the man take a phone call. In the conversation, he told someone that he had additional information to "contribute to the project." From the rest of the conversation, Auggie surmised that instructions for the exchange of information would come in another contact. Auggie hoped it would be by phone.<p>

Auggie relayed the information to Annie and explained it was more important now than ever to remain unnoticed in the background.

Annie answered, "Mmm huh. OK."

"Annie, would you call Joan and put her on speaker?"

Annie dialed Joan's direct number and she answered, "What do you know?"

Auggie described what they had found out and asked Annie to add anything he may have left out. Annie did tell Joan she'd wanted to go to the tavern, but Auggie nixed the idea. "He's right, Annie. It's too important to bring this to a conclusion quickly. We don't want to spend time getting sidetracked. Auggie has become a little bit of a legend around here and Chang may put it together. He's no fool."

"OK," Annie said.

"Now, give me a heads up the second you have intel on when and where the exchange will be made. It's time to bring in the FBI for the take-down," Joan said. "Don't try to be cowboys on this. Do you copy?"

"Yes, Joan," Auggie and Annie replied in unison.

Joan heard the smiles in both their voices. "Another management problem," she thought to herself.

Annie sat starring at Chang's house. Light filtered through the drapery on both front windows on either side of the front door. She assumed one was the bedroom and the other was the living room. The light to the right of the door turned off and a few seconds later, the other window went dark. In the twilight of a streetlight close to his house, Annie could see the door opening.

Annie was giving Auggie a second-by-second description of what she was seeing.

Chang started walking north from his house in the direction of the local tavern. "Auggie, do you hear anything?"

Auggie nodded. "I can hear his footsteps, so we lucked out and he didn't change into his favorite jeans." When Chang walked out of Annie's line of sight, she started the car and turned the corner to park behind his car and watched him walk up the street. When he turned the corner, she started the car and eased into the driving lane to drive to the tavern to see if that's where he was headed. She drove a little faster than she should up the two blocks and made a quick right turn in time to see him walk into the tavern.

"He's just walked into the tavern. Do you hear any suspicious conversation?" Annie asked.

Auggie shook his head. "No. Just the usual after-work kinds of conversations between friends. This place sounds a lot like Allen's Tavern would sound tonight."

"Hey," Annie said, "there's a little café on the other end of the block. Do you think it's safe for us to get a bite to eat there? If anyone asks too many questions, we can always use the line we're thinking about moving in around here."

They went into the café, which was filled with the locals eating dinner. They waited at the door until they were told to find a place to sit. Annie whispered to Auggie, "Table or booth?"

"Your call. Wherever you'll be most comfortable."

"Let's take the booth by the window and I'll sit where I can watch the door," Annie said as she started walking toward the booth. She stopped and put Auggie's hand on the corner of the table and took a couple of more steps to slide into her side of the booth. Auggie reached back for the back of the bench and slid in to his side.

The waitress brought them menus, but Annie … remembering Auggie's instructions to blend in … did not ask for a Braille menu. She opened her menu and asked Auggie what sounded good to him and reported she'd seen several people eating good looking salads. They each decided on ordering the grilled chicken breast salad and tea. Annie stacked the menus and slid them to the outside of the table for the waitress to pick up.

They ate their light dinner and chatted quietly because Auggie was still listening to the conversation in the tavern. Finally, Auggie said, "You can talk a little louder, Annie. Our guy is just having drinks with friends and trying to hit on a couple of women."

They finished their salads and visited the restrooms before they returned to the car for Annie to watch the tavern entrance. About the time Annie was thinking about whining because she was getting cold, Chang walked out and headed home … alone. She waited a few minutes before she followed him back to his house and watched as he turned on the living room light and then the bedroom light.

"It appears he's in for the night, Auggie. Do you think we can go back to the hotel, relax and warm up?"

Auggie chuckled. "How do you propose we do that?"

Annie punched him playfully in the arm, and with his quick reflexes he grabbed her wrist and held it for a moment before he slipped his hand in hers and kissed it. Annie giggled and said, "So, you find stake outs and surveillance romantic?"

"Only when I'm with you," he said grinning.

"You didn't answer my question. Can we call it a night?"

Auggie called Langley to talk to the night crew in DPD Tech Ops. He explained that Chang appeared to be in for the night, but to listen for any phone calls that would indicate where and when he would be having a meet. Before he ended the call, Auggie made sure his team was locked in on Chang.

"OK, Walker, it looks like we've earned some rest."

* * *

><p>Looks like they may have the chance to take down their guy tomorrow. It may get interesting and there may be some action before it's all said and done.<p>

Thanks for taking time to read. Later ...


	15. Chapter 15 The Takedown

Well this is it … the final chapter of "The Difference a Year Makes." It's been fun to write and share with you.

As state previously, I have no association with Covert Affairs other than a profound appreciation for the writers, crew and cast members who create some of the best characters on television … especially Christopher Gorham and Piper Parabo for giving such heart to Auggie and Annie.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 15 – The Takedown<strong>

Annie woke the next morning before the alarm, which was set for six. She sighed when she opened her eyes and saw that she could sleep for at least another half an hour. She quietly rolled over on her other side facing Auggie, and in the darkened room she thought she detected a slight smile twitch across his face. She moved the pillow and nestled her head in it, hoping to nap for a few more minutes. Just as she started to drift back to sleep, Auggie's arm draped over her body and pulled her closer to him.

Annie smiled and scooted closer to him tugging her pillow along and returning the hug. She kissed him softly on the lips. He returned the kiss and whispered, "We have a few more minutes to sleep, don't we?"

"Mmm huh," Annie murmured.

They wrapped their arms around each other and drifted back to sleep for a few minutes until both of their cell phones began ringing and vibrating on the bedside tables. They each groaned and rolled away from each other reaching and fumbling to answer the phones. Annie listened as one of Auggie's tech op assistants explained that Chang had received an early morning call from his illicit contact.

"OK," she said. "Auggie's on his phone with someone, too. It sounds like we have a little time, so I'm going to jump in the shower. I'll check back later."

Auggie ended the call from Tech Ops and started pulling clothes out of the closet and drawers, so he wouldn't waste any time when Annie was finished in the shower. He heard the water cut off and surmised by the rustling sounds she was toweling off. Annie opened the door wearing the robe provided by the hotel.

Auggie was sitting on the foot of the bed thinking about the just-concluded conversation.

"Aug, I'll dry my hair out here … there's a plug by the desk … so you can go ahead and hop in the shower. We don't want to waste time. Something on your mind?"

"Yeah," he answered as he got up. "Why would someone want to arrange an information drop at a jewelry store? I've been in this business a long time and this is a first."

"Jewelry store?" Annie asked as she leaned down to plug in the hair dryer.

"I guess a jewelry store. When Julian read back the transcript of the phone conversation, Chang's contact said to meet him at the Jewel Box shortly after it opened at nine o'clock."

"Jewel Box?" Annie asked. Are you sure it's the Jewel Box?"

"That's what Julian told me," Auggie said as he started to close the bathroom door.

"Auggie, the Jewel Box isn't a jewelry store," Annie said. Auggie stopped short of shutting the door.

"It's not?" he asked. "What is it, then."

Annie laughed lightly, because she had one up on Auggie. "It's the display green house in Forest Park. It has seasonal floral displays and is a venue for weddings and parties," she explained as she dried her hair. "I thought you said your parents brought you to St. Louis for ballgames and the zoo when you were kids."

"They did … but we never went to a greenhouse in Forest Park. We hung out with the lions, tigers and elephants. Four boys would have balked at a field trip to a floral display," Auggie said flatly and then his mouth turned up into the slightest smile.

"My mom has a whole series of photos of Danni and me in the Jewel Box with poinsettias and Easter lilies. Every time we visited her sister during a holiday, she'd dress us up along with our little cousin and we'd go to the park to get pictures in the gardens and the greenhouse," Annie said wistfully as she finished dressing.

Auggie showered quickly and while he dressed, quizzed Annie about the layout of the Jewel Box. As she began to describe the open area and paths she remembered, Auggie's phone rang. He picked it up and said, "Hi, Joan."

"Auggie, you and Annie are not looking for a jewelry store … you need to go to a greenhouse in Forest Park," Joan instructed.

Auggie chuckled. "We know. Annie visited there often when she was a kid. She was just describing its layout to me."

Joan smiled and shook her head. "You just love being two steps ahead of me, don't you?"

"In the interest of preserving my career advancement, I'm not answering that, Mrs. Campbell," Auggie said teasingly. Changing to a more serious tone he asked, "How do you want us to handle this?" His voice was pensive, because he knew he wouldn't be able to give Annie the proper backup she might need.

"We've already been in contact with the Bureau," Joan explained. "They have two teams available for backup. We're patching them in to our audio feed, so they can hear Chang and you and Annie. They won't move into the area until Chang is inside the building. They'll surround the building, but won't go in. Annie's the point person on witnessing the hand off of information."

"I'll try not to get in the way," Auggie said.

"It's not a matter of getting in the way, and you know it," Joan said sternly. "Please don't do anything that could get you injured. Your backup will be just a few feet outside the door. They're patched in, so they have ears on you, Annie and Chang. Once the handoff has been made, it becomes a Bureau matter for prosecution even though it's a CIA tech development project."

"I understand," Auggie said softly. "I'll be happy to be Annie's cover. We can wander around the building like we're checking it out for our wedding."

Underneath the cashmere turtleneck tunic she was tugging over her head, Annie said, "What?" at Auggie's last statement. "Hey, I'm here in the room. You can stop talking around me anytime now," Annie said in mock indignation."

Concluding the call, Auggie chuckled lightly as he explained, "Joan's orders are for you to witness the handoff of the classified information, for me not to get hurt and for both of us to let the FBI snag Chang and his contact when they leave the greenhouse."

Annie smiled as she watched Auggie walk to the closet to pick out a shirt. They'd been in the hotel room for just a couple of days, but he moved around the space as easily as if he were in his own home. She also noticed that he had just a little swagger, which she attributed to having the chance to get out in the field again. As he pulled on the shirt in front of the closet, Annie stopped as she walked past him and slipped her arm around his waist and laid her head against his left arm. "We'll get it done and be on our way back to Chicago after lunch … don't you think?"

"Yes, I do," he answered confidently.

* * *

><p>According to their phone conversation, Chang and his contact were supposed to meet at the Jewel Box at nine thirty that morning. Annie and Auggie wanted to arrive at the Jewel Box a few minutes after it opened at nine o'clock. They could familiarize themselves with its layout and not look suspicious, because there probably would be other young couples checking out the building for their weddings.<p>

Annie pulled into the parking lot and surveyed their surroundings. She squinted her eyes and let out a deep breath.

"Something wrong?" Auggie asked.

"No. I'm trying to decide the best way to describe the area to you. It's open with wide walkways leading up to the entrance and on the way to the entrance is a large fountain pool that's been drained for the season, because the fountain's not running."

"How many cars are in the parking lot?" Auggie asked.

"Several sedans, a couple of sports cars and a couple of SUVs. The Bureau's not here yet … there are no black Suburbans in the lot," Annie whispered. "They must have a secluded staging area … I didn't see any evidence of them driving in, and I looped around a couple of times before I pulled into the parking lot."

Auggie unbuckled his seatbelt and said, "I know … good job. Have I told you lately how proud I am of you and your work as an officer?"

As she opened the door and started to slide out of the Escalade, Annie turned to him, "And have I told you lately how much I appreciate your helping me become a better officer?"

Auggie grinned and chuckled self-consciously. "Glad I could be of assistance, Ms. Walker … where are we parked in relation to the building?"

"From where you're standing right now, the fountain is at your one o'clock and the front of the building is at your ten o'clock," Annie answered.

Auggie unfolded his cane, closed the car door and started walking toward the fountain. Annie closed her door and followed Auggie along the walkway. "Veer just a little to your right and in about three steps your cane should make contact with the base of the fountain," Annie advised. Auggie nodded and smiled only slightly. Almost any other officer, Auggie was sure, would be balking at working in the field with him. But Annie embraced being in the field with him and was unfazed by the necessity of giving him verbal clues about his environment.

"How many steps to my left do I need to walk to square myself up with the main entrance?" Auggie asked.

"Maybe five or six … I'll tell you when to stop," Annie said softly. "There. Stop."

Auggie stopped and turned with the fountain wall directly behind him. "Straight ahead?"

"Yes, straight ahead," Annie answered. "Why are you doing this? Why don't we just walk to the entrance together?"

"We could do that, but I wouldn't have as good a reference about the area, in case I need it," Auggie said. "It's just me and my spy craft," he added with his signature smile. "Can you describe the greenhouse for me?"

"It's almost three stories tall and it looks like a giant square tiered cake." Annie walked behind him until they were about thirty feet from the entrance. She caught up to him and slipped her arm through his left arm and then let her arm drop until their hands caressed.

Taking the last few steps toward the entrance, Annie turned her head to look behind them. She didn't see anyone approaching and did not see Chang's car in the parking lot. "Do you see anyone we're looking for?" Auggie asked.

"How'd you know I was looking for them?" Annie asked shaking her head.

"For starters, I felt your hair brush against my shoulder and I had a whiff of your shampoo. That doesn't happen unless you turn your head quickly," he explained. "You didn't answer my question. What did you see?"

"Nothing, yet," Annie replied. "When we get inside, let's take a quick walk around. Then we can hang by the entrance until they show up. Is that OK with you? Or, do you think we should do something different?"

"That's exactly how I'd do it," Auggie reassured her.

Entering the building, Auggie moved his hand to Annie's elbow. Annie took a few steps inside the greenhouse and stopped to describe the scene from the entrance to Auggie. She stepped in front of him and kissed his cheek as she checked the miniature microphone clipped inside his sweater. Auggie grinned before he said, "Am I coming in loud and clear?"

"We can hear you fine in Tech Ops," came the first response. A moment later, "You're coming in fine on the ground in St. Louis," an unfamiliar voice said. Annie gently patted Auggie's chest and took a couple of steps away to test her own microphone. They both heard similar responses to Auggie's test.

Annie stepped back to face Auggie, standing toe-to-toe with him. She wanted to tell him to be extra cautious, but didn't because their conversation was being monitored and recorded. She put her hands on his chest and he smiled and moved his left hand up her arm to her cheek to give it a gentle caress. "Now," he said, "why don't we spend a few minutes exploring the layout of this place."

They walked through the open area that was set up with white folding chairs for a wedding and then along the walkway that meandered through the permanent plantings and seasonal display. When they started walking around the path, Auggie released his grip on Annie and she stepped back to let him explore with his cane. She described the low walls, palm trees, potted displays and benches as they strolled along the looping path.

"And, now, we're back where we began," she said as Auggie's cane clanked against the metal and wood park style bench that was at the neck of the path. "Park bench," she said. "Standard size."

Auggie nodded. "It's open by the entrance, so they'll probably take the meet back in this area."

"Yeah, that's what I'm thinking, too," Annie said.

Auggie sat on the bench, folded his cane and laid it beside him. "I'll wait here. I'll be inconspicuous, but might be able to hear both sides of their conversation."

"I'm going to explore out near the entrance, so I can alert everyone when they arrive," Annie said walking away. She wandered through the area that was set up for the wedding and when she saw an Asian man come into the building, she began inspecting the way the front of the area was set up. The well-dressed man walked purposefully toward the path where Auggie had made himself comfortable. Only a few minutes passed before Chang came into the building carrying a large padded manila envelope.

"They're both in the building, I think," Annie stage whispered into her microphone.

Chang looked around and walked toward the path. Neither man paid any attention to Auggie sitting on the bench. Auggie heard their footsteps stride past him and not even slow to assess what he was doing there. The sound of their footsteps faded as they looped around the path behind the permanent plantings of the palm trees.

Auggie heard them talking in hushed tones, through his earpiece. Chang was telling his handler that this was the last time he would be bringing him information. His handler was angry at the news.

Annie made her way through the greenhouse and up the path past Auggie where she'd reached out and patted his shoulder as she walked by to let him know where she was. He raised his hand and their fingers brushed.

The argument behind the palm trees escalated as the Asian man threatened Chang if he didn't continue to sneak information out of the research lab. "It's getting too risky," Chang said. "They are tightening security at the lab, and more people keep rotating in from Washington. I can't keep this up. I'm a wreck."

"You will bring me what I want, or we'll kill you," the Asian man said shoving Chang in the shoulder.

"Kill me and you'll never have the chance to get any more information," Chang retorted as he answered the shove with one of his own.

"We'll find another researcher who needs extra money as bad as you did."

"Try … but they won't have my security clearance and they won't know what pieces of information to bring out of the lab," Chang said as the man lunged toward him.

"Take this last piece of information and get out of my life," Chang said as he fell back against the trunk of a tree. The Asian man pulled a knife out of a sheath strapped to his leg and lunged toward Chang stabbing him in the right side.

Annie had maneuvered to a vantage point where she could observe the two men. She watched in horror as the foreign handler attacked Chang with a knife. She lunged through the plants trying to tackle him before he could stab Chang a second time. Chang doubled over in pain … bleeding, groaning and holding his side. The Asian man turned his wrath toward Annie and rushed toward her with the knife. Using one of the hand-to-hand moves Auggie had taught her, Annie avoided the attacker and threw him off balance; but he was able to escape.

Outside in the parking lot, FBI agents scrambled out of SUVs and ran toward the Jewel Box. They could hear the scuffle inside, but the area outside the entrance was clear.

Annie rubbed the back of her head as the man scrambled to his feet. "Auggie," she yelled, "he's getting away."

Auggie was already on the edge of the bench and braced to stop someone before Annie yelled. He heard the man running toward him, stuck he leg out to trip him and then jumped on him in an attempt to subdue him. They rolled around on the path struggling. Auggie had a good grip on him and got in a couple of solid punches, but the attacker managed to free himself and throw Auggie against the bench where he struck the side of his head. His head was spinning, but he managed to turn and grab at the man's ankles and pull him off balance again.

When the FBI agents came up to the path, Annie was helping Chang to his feet and Auggie was hanging on to the Asian.

"FBI," the lead agent announced. Auggie did not release his hold on the man until he felt the agents grab him and pull him to his feet. Two more FBI men took over from Annie to help Chang, allowing Annie to run toward Auggie who was being helped to his feet by Agent Vincent Rassibi. "I keep running into you two in the strangest situations," Rassibi greeted Auggie. "Are you OK?"

Auggie was unsteady on his feet, held his hand to his head and said, "I'm not really sure," he answered.

Rassibi studied Auggie for a split second and said sharply, "You need to sit down before you fall down." He then took Auggie's hand and placed it on the back of the bench and added in a kind tone, "There you go."

"Thanks," Auggie said, trying to shake off the dizziness and queasiness that comes with a bad bump to the head.

A voice from Langley came into Auggie's earpiece, "August Anderson, what did you do to yourself?"

"Bumped my head, Joan," Auggie answered. "Really, it'll be OK. I'm just a little dizzy."

"Uh huh …" Joan replied.

"Joan, I didn't let him get away."

"I know, Auggie. Good job, but damnit, Auggie, you scare me."

Another agent accompanying Rassibi took Chang in custody and checked his superficial wound. "Vince, we'd better take him to the hospital before we take him in for questioning."

Rassibi nodded and turned back to Annie and Auggie. "Have you two made it a secondary career to get in the middle of every major case I work on?"

"Your major case?" Annie asked indignantly and raising her voice. Auggie winced at the higher pitch … something that did not go unnoticed by either Rassibi or Annie. "This is our case. Chang works at a CIA funded laboratory and we've suspected him of passing technical information to the Chinese."

"Well, we've been tracking the other guy for almost two years. Your Chang is just one of about 10 people he's had stealing tech secrets for him," Rassibi countered. "Are you coming downtown to the office for interrogation?"

"I wouldn't miss it," Annie said. "We'll be right behind you." Rassibi stalked out of the green house and joined his fellow agents in the convoy to the St. Louis headquarters of the FBI on Market Street.

Annie sat on the bench beside Auggie, who was still holding the side of his head and taking deep breaths. She reached for his hand. "Let me take a look at it." She lifted his hand away from the left side of his head and saw that the skin was broken on his cheek and temple and it was beginning to discolor and swell.

"I think we need to have a doctor take a look at you," Annie whispered. "With your medical history, we don't want to take any chances with a head injury."

Joan was still patched into Auggie's and Annie's microphones. "Listen to her, Auggie. I'll call Dr. Kessler to find out if he has a colleague in St. Louis to recommend."

"Ok, Joan," Annie said. "We'll go ahead and go to the car and go straight where you tell us."

"From now on," Joan said, "we'll be back on the secure phones."

"Yes, ma'am," Annie answered.

Auggie stood up tentatively and took an unsteady step. "Wait," where'd my cane end up?" he asked. Annie looked around and found it had rolled under and behind the bench.

"Found it … under the bench," she said as she handed it to Auggie.

Auggie unfolded it, took another couple of shaky steps and said, "OK, Annie, this isn't going to work. Will you stick close to me until we get to the car?"

"You really don't like the asking for help thing, do you?"

"Not under these circumstances," he admitted.

Annie's phone rang as they walked across the open area in front of the building. "Joan, where do we need to go?"

"How's he doing?" Joan asked.

"He's a little shaky and dizzy, and he's mad about what happened."

"That's typical Auggie. I spoke with Dr. Kessler and he's arranged to have Dr. Bryan take a look at him in the Emergency Room at Barnes Hospital. Do you know where that is?" Joan said.

"Yes … it's not too far from our location right now?"

"Good," Joan said. "Go to the Emergency Room, and tell them arrangements have been made for Dr. Bryan to check him over before you go to the FBI office … and Annie … relax this evening at the hotel. Don't head back to Chicago until tomorrow … just in case … understood?"

"I understand, Joan," Annie answered.

Less than twenty minutes later, Auggie was sitting on the end of an examination table in a cubicle in the Emergency Room and Annie was in the corner fidgeting as Dr. Bryan examined Auggie. "I don't think it's anything more than a slight concussion that's going to give you a headache for a couple of days, but just to be sure, I'm sending you upstairs for an MRI."

Auggie nodded calmly. The doctor noticed that Annie looked terrified. He smiled at her and explained, "It's just a precaution. He might have some dizziness for a day or two, but the longest lasting effect is going to be the bruise on the side of his face."

"After the MRI," Annie asked, "do you think we can get some ice for that? It might help some of the bruising."

"Sure … I'll have the nurse bring some ice before you go upstairs," Dr. Bryan said as he handed the room number to Annie.

Turning back to Auggie, the doctor asked Auggie if he wanted to walk upstairs or go in a wheelchair. "Walk, if Annie can go with me," he answered quickly.

Shortly after the doctor left, a nurse came in with an ice pack. "Mr. Anderson," she addressed him. "Here's some ice for your injury."

Auggie took the pack and held it against his head. After a few more deep breaths he told Annie, "That feels surprisingly good." Annie rubbed his shoulder gently and asked if he was ready to go for the MRI.

An hour and a half later, after the nurse in radiology had found some fresh ice for the ice bag, the couple left the hospital. Auggie was less shaky and was feeling better knowing that Dr. Bryan's original diagnosis was correct. He was told to take it easy and to stay as quiet as possible the rest of the day and that he could travel to Chicago tomorrow.

When they were settled in the car, Annie made a management decision. She would take Auggie back to the hotel to rest and she would go to the FBI headquarters alone. "If they need specifics from you," she told Auggie, "we can call. I really want you to rest so you feel like spending five hours in the car with me tomorrow."

Auggie sighed. "I'd argue with you, but between the throbbing and knowing I'd lose; I'm just going to say thank you."

Annie dropped Auggie at the hotel, filled their ice bucket, made sure he was comfortable and was back on the road to the FBI office. "Be back as quick as I can. Leave your phone on, so I can call if Rassibi has questions for you," she said as she pulled the door closed.

Auggie was glad to have a couple of hours alone to gather his thoughts. The blow had brought back some dark memories and the initial dizziness had frightened him more than he realized until it began to dissipate. It was one thing to deal with the challenges of blindness even with a strong support system. It would be a totally different if the latest incident had permanently damaged his equilibrium and sense of balance. He sat in the quiet room trying to relax and deciding whether he should take one of the pain meds they'd given him at the hospital.

He decided against the pain killer, fearing it would make his thinking fuzzy if he needed to answer any questions. Auggie should have relaxed, because Annie had taken control of the situation and diffused any animosity that Rassibi may have been harboring. Annie explained that the Agency was available to help with the prosecution as long as all covert officers' identity could be protected. Joan had advised her that the transcripts of all the conversations they'd obtained would be available as long as officers' names were redacted.

Standing in the viewing room watching the interrogation of the Asian man, Annie asked Rassibi, "Any idea who this character is?"

"His name is Harold Chen. He's not a member of Chinese Intelligence … his family owns a tech development company in Shanghai, and he was buying your development information to beat you to the marketplace with it," Rassibi explained.

"Well, we weren't going to take the technology to the marketplace. It is for our soldiers serving in the Middle East to make their night patrols safer," Annie said. "They were working on creating light weight night vision glasses. Now, the enemy may get them before our troops," Annie said.

"Maybe they haven't gotten enough pieces to the puzzle to hurt our efforts," Vincent said.

"I hope not," Annie sighed. "Will you do something for me, Vincent? Make sure the charges stick."

"I'll do my best," he said reassuringly as they walked out of the viewing room. "Oh … did they keep your friend in the hospital?"

"Thanks for asking … no … he's back at the hotel resting. If he feels like in the morning, we're going to hit the road for Chicago."

"Chicago? Did you get reassigned to Chicago?"

"Oh, god, no," Annie exclaimed. "We were in Chicago visiting Auggie's family for Thanksgiving when this operation fell into our laps. Our director thought it made sense for Auggie and me to take the lead since we were already in the Midwest and Chang had never seen either of us."

"Your friend is a coworker?" Rassibi asked.

"Yes he is, and he's very good at what he does," Annie said proudly.

"Well, he's tough and fearless. I'm just sorry we didn't get in the building quicker today before he got hurt," Rassibi apologized.

"Me too, but if the truth be known, I'd almost bet he's not too unhappy to have a new battle injury and to prove he can still take care of himself and do his job in the field," Annie smiled. "And speaking of that, if you don't need anything else from me, I'd like to get back to the hotel to check on him."

"Sure," Rassibi said. "Let's not do this again."

By the time Annie returned to the hotel, it was dusk and the room was dark when she unlocked and opened the door. She flipped on the light and walked quietly down the hall to the bedroom area. Auggie was propped up in bed holding the ice bag, wrapped in a hand towel, to the side of his head. Before Annie could speak, Auggie spoke her name softly. "It's me," she said, "I didn't want to startle you, and I didn't want to wake you … but they did tell you to stay awake, didn't they?"

"Yes, they did," he chuckled, "and it was hard, because a nap is sounding pretty good."

"Why don't we order an early dinner, watch some tv and call it a day. We have a long drive ahead of us tomorrow, if you feel like it," Annie suggested.

"I'll be OK tomorrow. But I am concerned about what I'm going to look like," he mused.

Annie turned on the bed side lamp and lifted the ice bag off his head. She grimaced. "Yep, Auggie, that's leaving a mark … a nasty looking bruise. Your mother is going to want to strangle me, because she'll think I wasn't looking out for you."

Auggie put the ice bag back in place. "She knows differently, Annie. And so does Dad. We'll just have to ask her if it's OK not to have the whole family get together tomorrow night before we leave. And … if any strangers say anything, we'll just have to let them think I misjudged the edge of the bathroom doorframe in a hotel room."

"You seem pretty comfortable with that explanation," Annie observed.

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time it happened for real," Auggie chuckled. "Now, what are we going to order for dinner?"

"I don't know … when I'd finish a tough mission and go home to Dani's, she could tell I'd had a rough time of it and we'd share a carton of ice cream."

Auggie sat up straight and swung his feet over the side of the bed, patting the space next to him, inviting Annie to sit. He put his arm around her shoulder, pulled her into an affectionate hug and asked, "Rocky Road or Vanilla?"

* * *

><p><strong>Epilogue<strong>

Although bruised and sore the next day, Auggie felt like he was fine to travel with Annie back to Chicago … after they'd splurged on a room service breakfast. Annie was a little sore, too, but she tried to keep it from Auggie, who did detect her wince. He decided to let her keep it to herself.

Before starting out to Chicago, Annie fixed a fresh ice bag for Auggie's bruises and gently applied some antibiotic ointment to his broken skin.

Before they checked out of the hotel, Annie and Auggie had a video conference with Joan, who told them not to rebook their plane tickets until Friday. "Auggie should be a tad more presentable, by then," she said in a half teasing tone.

Amanda Anderson concealed her concern when Auggie showed up bruised and Annie was moving like she'd pulled a muscle or two. When she asked what the other guy looked like, Auggie responded, "Don't know what he looks like, but he's in custody." Amanda took advantage of the extra days with them to to cook some of Auggie's favorite childhood meals and enjoy having the young couple padding around the house in sweats.

Before they left for Washington, Annie and Auggie discussed their Christmas holiday plans and decided that after spending Christmas with Annie's family they would try to return to Glencoe for the New Year celebrations.

On the flight home, Auggie wasn't opposed to sitting in the window seat so he could conceal his bruised face from fellow passengers.

* * *

><p>Well, Annie and Auggie have stumbled into and conquered another mission to keep us safe. Good job, kids!<p>

Thank you so much for reading and sharing this adventure with me. Also, thank you for the alerts and encouraging comments.


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